Snow
by masterctarl
Summary: FINISHED! TFA: Sentinel's team return to Earth in time to see snow. Before they know it, they're caught up in a strange holiday called Christmas. Warning: Contains slash
1. Forbidden

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Transformers or any person, place, or thing connected to it. They all belong to Hasbro and Takara. Please don't sue me.

**Chapter warnings and notes: Implied one-sided Jazz/Prowl. This takes place after Predacons Rising.**

**Chapter 1  
Forbidden**

Jazz had said it while on the ship, looking down onto the Earth. But now that he was standing in it, he had to say it again. "Crazy…"

"It's just snow," Bumblebee scoffed at him.

"Says the 'bot who thought it was an evil Decepticon plot the first time he saw it," Prowl muttered.

Bumblebee glowered at him. "It seemed logical at the time!" he insisted.

Sentinel's team had returned to Earth to check in on the others, much to Sentinel's disdain. When they arrived, the city was blanketed in a white powder, from streets to rooftops. And, while Cybertronians did not feel cold in the traditional sense, they could read the temperature and fell their heating units kick in to prevent freezing in their systems.

"Why is water being frozen from the sky?" Jetfire asked. He and his brother were watching with wide optics. Neither had seen anything like it. They had seen many thing fall out of the sky, but never anything so pretty. And as soon as the flakes touched down onto their plating, they disappeared.

"It is a part of the ecosystem and pattern of seasons here on Earth. This season is called 'winter', and the snow and low temperatures are a result of this part of the planet being farthest from the sun right now," Prowl explained. Bumblebee muttered something along the lines of 'nerd' and Prowl glared at him.

"Fascinating!" Sentinel called bitterly from the top of the ship's ramp. He refused to leave the ship under these conditions. "But how do I know it won't melt my processor as soon as I touch it?!"

"How would we be telling?" Jetstorm muttered. His twin snickered.

"We've been out in this before, and we're fine," Bumblebee replied.

"You lot have been glitched since you were protoformed!" Sentinel snapped. "You aren't a shining example!"

Jazz sighed. "Look, we ran a scan on it from the ship!" he called up. "It ain't nothin' but cold H2O!"

Sentinel still looked unsure. The look was ended, though, as a large ball of snow hit him square in the faceplate. "Alright!" he snapped. "Who threw that?!"

Bumblebee was laughing too hard to hide his guilt. "You should have seen the look on your face!" he practically squawked.

The prime turned red in the faceplate before jumping down the ship's ramp and taking off after the little yellow 'bot. "Get back here! I'm gonna arrest you for assaulting an officer of the Elite Guard!" he barked.

"Well, at least he's off the ship," Jazz sighed again. Sometimes he wondered of being Elite Guard was worth putting up with 'Loudmouth Prime'.

"If anyone can coax someone off of a ship that fast, it will always be Bumblebee," his fellow ninjabot nodded. Without warning, he began walking off. "I wonder how long it will take Sentinel to discover the ice patches," he mused.

Jazz followed quickly. "The ice wha - whoa!" he was cut off as his pede seemed to fly out from under him. Prowl caught him by the arm before his head could hit the concrete.

"That," Prowl grinned, "is an ice patch. The snow will freeze into ice on the road. It happens in my room as well, since my roof is open. The first time I tried to train in my room after it snowed I nearly fell on my aft."

Jazz looked at him in surprise as he stood back up. "You? Fall on you aft?" he nudged the black and gold bot teasingly as they headed for the warehouse. "I don't see it."

"I said _nearly_," Prowl said sternly. There was a hint of humor in his voice, though. "Never let Bumblebee find out. I would never hear the end of it."

"My lips are sealed," Jazz promised.

"You little glitch, when I catch you, I'll--!" the sentence behind them was stopped short by the sound of metal hitting concrete. Hard. The two cringed and turned around to see Sentinel sprawled face-down in the same spot Jazz had slipped.

"Oh… my… spark!" Bumblebee was doubled over, gasping in between guffaws.

Even the twins couldn't hide their mirth. They stopped their rolling of a huge ball of snow to laugh at their commander, who struggled to get up.

"Quit your noise and help me, you cogs!" Sentinel snapped. Almost automatically the twins saluted and rushed to his aid.

"Come," Prowl beckoned Jazz away from the amusing scene. At Jazz's questioning look Prowl smiled. "There is something I'd like to show you."

Walking through their warehouse home wasn't as much odd as just plain awkward. Both Optimus Prime and Ratchet were spending their beautiful winter day pouring over data pads.

"You two don't dig the crazy weather?" Jazz asked as they went by.

"More important things to do than marvel over frozen water," Ratchet grunted, not looking up.

"Is Sentinel out there?" Optimus asked, setting down his pad.

"Yeah, why?" the black and white cyberninja asked.

"Because that's why I'm _not_."

"Ah. Gotcha." It was all Jazz really needed to hear. Their last visit to Earth ended on a sour note, so he understood the red and blue leader's choice of avoidance.

"Are you coming?" Prowl called. He was at the door that led out to the hall.

"Yeah, wait up!" Jazz waved at the other two as he hurried to catch up. "So, what's so awesome I have to see it? I mean, it can't top this 'snow', can it?"

"It both can and can't," his companion answered cryptically. He led Jazz to his room, then leapt into his tree. Jazz noted that a blanket of powder indeed covered the exposed potions of Prowl's room. The tree was also now bare, but the snow decorated every branch, falling only from those Prowl touched. The black and white ninjabot followed after him to the roof.

When he arrived, Prowl was standing on the opposite side of the roof where the sun, rays struggling to peak out between thick snow clouds, was starting to dip into the evening sky. "Weird, doesn't the sun usually stay out longer than this on this planet?" Jazz asked as he approached.

"Winter days are short, and their nights cold," was the response. Prowl then crossed his legs gracefully and sat on the edge of the roof.

"I know that tidbit wasn't why you brought me here," Jazz said, sitting next to him.

"It will happen in a few kliks. Be patient," Prowl muttered.

Jazz didn't argue. Instead he looked over the edge where he saw Jetfire and Jetstorm still rolling their snowball. With the rapid snow falling in huge flakes, they had plenty to work with. It was almost as big as they were. Bumblebee was laying in a patch of snow flailing his arms and legs up and down like a glitched sparkling. Sentinel was nowhere to be seen, so he either retired to the ship or the warehouse. If it were the latter, Jazz figured before long they'd be able to hear him and Optimus fighting from Cybertron.

"Whaddaya suppose those cats are doin'?" Jazz asked, nodding to the scene below.

"I'm not sure about the twins, but I believe Sari calls what Bumblebee is making a 'snow angel'. Apparently it's supposed to resemble a winged human when he is done."

"Some humans have wings?" Jazz asked in surprise.

"No, it's complicated. It's part of some of their religions."

"Hmm…" they fell back into silence. Jazz glanced at the other cyberninja. The samurai mods from Lockdown's ship really did look good on him. And Yoketron's helmet? Only their master, rest his Spark, could wear it better. It was sad, but Prowl was… different ever since they found out the truth about Lockdown and Yoketron. Something had hit him deep in his Spark. Something Jazz wanted to ask about but thought it too personal.

There was a sudden glow that drew Jazz's attention. The clouds that had been covering the sun parted just enough for the rays to shine through. The amazing part was the reflection it made off of the snow as it set. The magical orange glow offset by sparkling white and yellow crystals. Earth truly was astounding, and this had to be it at it's best.

"You should see the countryside like this."

Jazz started as Prowl spoke. He had been so enthralled that he forgot where he was. "Must be…" he trailed off as he looked at Prowl again, optics widening. "…beautiful…" he finished the sentence with a small gasp.

"Yes, very," Prowl nodded, optics still fixed in front of him.

But Jazz wasn't talking about the setting sun. He was transfixed by its reflection gleaming off of Prowl's form. Every trace of gleaming gold and black metal was beautiful and dazzling. The calm, still face with his gently parted lips was tempting and forbidden. Jazz knew Prowl too well to try anything. He had made a small, discreet attempt before to get closer to him only to be repelled by a cold stare and pursed lips. Ever since, they acted like it never happened.

So Jazz couldn't do it. He couldn't push his luck with another mistake. So he instead settled with watching him, cursing his luck at falling for something so forbidden. Cursing whoever would someday have the gold and black ninjabot. And cursing the sun and snow for making him look so beautiful.


	2. Memories

**Disclaimer: **I still own none of it. Don't sue me. I do, however, own Ivee, Drift, and Skidd. If you wish to use them, please ask.

**Chapter warnings: Implied Longarm/Bumblebee if you squint**

**Notes: **Ohmispark, I never expected to get that many replies in the first 12 hours! X3 Thanks everyone!

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Independent.C.**: Don't worry, there will be _much_ more torture coming for Sentinel in future chapters. And the giant snowball? Well, you'll see.

**Randomstrike**: No, sorry. Lockdown actually won't be in this fanfic, but he will appear in the sequel. There will be plenty of surprises in store. (Are you dying of suspense yet? Huh? Huh? X3)

**Shirox**, **panthergirl29**, **xoxo**, **Hot Rod's Girl**, **I play wid fir3**, **flamingmarsh** and **Shizuka Taiyo**: Thank you for the reviews! Updates will be coming as quickly as possible!

**Chapter 2  
Memories**

"Keep pushing, brother!"

"I am pushing much!"

Bumblebee watched in astonishment as the snowball the twins were making exceeded even his own height. The sun had been out briefly during sunset, but did nothing to melt the snow. Now, illuminated by the warehouse external light, snow still falling hard, the two diligently continued their strenuous and mysterious task.

Bumblebee himself had retired inside for a while to play videogames after the brothers had rolled up all of the good snowdrifts. But boredom soon overtook him as there was no one to play with. Sari and Bulkhead were snowed into the Sumdac Tower, the twins were rolling their giant snowball, and Prowl and Jazz were on the roof doing…whatever it was cyber ninjas do on a roof. So he returned outside to watch the twins.

He'd asked what it was the twins were doing with the ball of snow before, but the only response he'd gotten was, "It is being a surprise."

"Maybe this would being easier with jets," Jetfire suggested.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Bumblebee said. "Not unless you want to start over. Your jets would melt it."

"He is having point, brother," Jetstorm nodded.

"Then pushing away we will be," his brother grinned.

Bumblebee leaned back against the snowdrift and offlined his optics, just listening. Prowl would be proud of how quiet and still he was being. The yellow bot listened to the sound of crunching snow, clanging steps, and accented voices. His mind wandered back to Autobot boot camp.

()()()()()()

"Move it you glitches! Push!" Sentinel barked at them. Each bot was pushing an iron ball twice the size of the average Autobot uphill, with the help of a partner of course.

For once Bumblebee felt glad he was saddled up with Bulkhead. The large, green bot could push it all on his own. All Bumblebee had to do was pretend to help and he was in the clear.

"You doin' alright, little buddy?" Bulkhead asked as they passed the halfway point.

Bumblebee glanced over his shoulder and grinned at Wasp and Ironhide, who struggled with theirs. "Oh, yeah, I'm doing great," he replied. He then added, "And stop calling me that!"

"Oh, _are_ you doing 'great'?" Bumblebee froze and turned the other way. Sentinel stood behind them, tapping his pede on the concrete.

"Er… uh… I mean, this is _so_ heavy! I don't know _how_ I'm doing it!" the yellow bot said quickly.

"Yeah, nice try," Sentinel leaned down, faceplate inches from his own. "If that's so easy, then why don't you go help someone who needs it? Like, say…Wasp?" Bumblebee groaned loudly. "What was that, cog?!" the drill sergeant snapped.

"Sir!" Bumblebee jumped and saluted. "Going to help, sir!" He scrambled over to the sneering face of Wasp, and the glowering Ironhide.

"Well, well," Wasp hissed. "Look what the sergeant dragged in."

"Leave me alone, Wasp," Bumblebee huffed. He put his servos on the ball and helped push, standing between the two. Without Bulkhead there it was decidedly a lot harder. "I don't like this anymore than you do."

"Did you hear that?" Ironhide grinned. "He wants us to leave him alone."

"Well, if you insist," Wasp exchanged an equally mischievous grin.

"Huh-?" Before Bumblebee could register what was happening, Wasp and Ironhide pushed off at the same time, each stepping out of the way of the huge iron ball. "Hey!" the yellow bot stumbled backwards as the ball, now unsupported, started rolling back. He wasn't fast enough, though, and cried out in surprise and pain as the giant metal ball rolled onto his pede and threatened to crush him.

"Bumblebee!" the ball suddenly came to a halt just at his knee as Longarm and Bulkhead both caught it. The iron ball Bulkhead had been pushing rolled back down the hill, almost flattening Sentinel on the way, which would have been funny if Bumblebee weren't in excruciating pain at the moment. "Are you okay, little buddy?" Bulkhead asked as he rolled the ball back off of the yellow bot's leg.

"Do I look okay to you?!" the small bot snapped, gripping his mangled limb. He then looked at Wasp, who was giving his best innocent expression. "What was that for?!" he yelled.

"I don't know what Bumblebee is talking about," the green bot insisted. "_You_ weren't pushing your weight. If _we_ hadn't moved we'd all be pancakes!"

"You slaggin' liar, you did it on purpose!" Bee struggled to his good limb with Longarm's help.

"Whatever the reason, you two are both to start back at the bottom!" Sentinel snapped at Wasp and Ironhide.

"What?!" the two bots yelped.

"Don't give me that! This was a _teamwork_ exercise! And in the Autobot Elite Guard, teamwork is essential! You never leave a bot behind, not even to save your own chassis! You two will do this exercise until you learn that!" the sergeant barked.

Bumblebee suddenly spoke up, feeling heavier in Longarm's grip as he slumped down. "Uh… Sarge-bot? As much as I love watching you crack the whip, I'm losing a lot of oil pressure here… and feelin' a bit… woozy…" he trailed off, trying to shake off the feeling of dizziness.

"Right, Longarm! Take him to repair!" Sentinel barked.

"Sir!" Longarm saluted and gently picked the little bot up, carrying him to the repair ward.

The resident medibot, Ivee, was a tough ol' femme with a bad attitude. She had a rusty red paint job and was possibly the oldest bot Bumblebee knew at the time. "What the pit happened to you?" She was also extremely crude.

"He needs to get some oil and a diagnosis on his leg," Longarm replied. "It got crushed pretty good in the teamwork exercise."

"Ah, iron ball treatment," Ivee stood up, waving at one of the berths. Longarm set Bumblebee down on it. "You're lucky it was just your leg. Once had a bot that came in after that exercise with his whole lower chassis flat as sheet metal. I always get a few accidents from that every stellar cycle."

"This wasn't… accident…" Bumblebee's processor was spinning at this point.

"Hold your energon, I'll get you some oil and an inspection and you'll be back to driving laps in no time," the medibot grinned.

Soon Longarm was helping his fellow cadet down some oil while Ivee prodded at the mangled mess of his leg. "Did a number alright, but nothing fatal. We'll have to have the slaggin' thing replaced, though. Congratulations, kid. You just won ten solar cycles off from training."

"Lucky me," Bumblebee smiled weakly. Ivee had clamped off the exposed wires and tubes, removing anything that looked useless. A small EMP pulse had knocked out any feeling he'd had in that leg, for which he was grateful.

"You should have seen back in the day, we had these twins here," Ivee started into one of her famous stories. "One brought the other into here with so many dents he was called 'crater-aft Skidd' until he was in the Elite Guard."

"Twins? What're twins?" Bumblebee asked, confused.

"Ah, you're still young, aren't you?" the rusty medibot looked up at him. "Never seen a twin, huh? Well, twins are when one protoform splits into two during their earliest stage, liquid metal. It's extremely rare, only happens once every about hundred stellar cycles. This is gonna pinch."

"Wha-? OW!" Longarm had to hold Bumblebee to the berth to keep him from jumping off of it. "What'd you just do?!" the yellow bot all but squeaked.

"Sorry, you had a loose wire I had to pull out," she replied with a half-hearted apology. "I'll get you some more oil, sounds like it's doing good."

Ivee walked out of the room, leaving Bumblebee and Longarm alone. Bumblebee sighed. "Why do those two hate me so much? I mean, what did I ever do to them?" he muttered.

"Some bots don't need a reason," Longarm shrugged. "You're lucky we caught that ball, though. We'd be referring to you as the _late_ Bumblebee otherwise. What were those idiots doing? It's one thing to pull a prank on someone, but you could have been offlined."

"I don't think they much cared about that," Bumblebee said bitterly. "Look at me, I'm sans a leg! I must be a pitiful sight!"

"You're not that bad," the other bot assured him. "A few loose wires here and there, but they'll have to fixed up in no time."

"You sure it's okay for you still to be here?" Bumblebee asked, pushing himself onto his elbows. "I'd thing the Sarge-bot would want you to return to your cadet duties."

"Don't worry about me," Longarm held up his servos. "I'll deal with it if it comes along. I just don't feel like it would be right to leave you here all alone."

"Really?" Bumblebee felt a bit of color creep into his faceplate. For some reason, Longarm was the only bot he felt really _cared _about him. It was stability he never really had before the Autobot boot camp. It was stability he rather needed, though.

()()()()()()

"Please to be looking out!" Bumblebee was started out of his stasis nap by an accented yelp. The giant snowball was heading straight for him.

"Whoa!" Bumblebee jumped out of the way, optics wide. A large ball almost flattening him? It was deja vu. The twins were chasing the snowball, but losing hope as it was heading straight for a wall. If it hit, all of their work would be for nothing.

"Oh, no!" Jetfire groaned as they skidded to a stop. But the snowball suddenly halted, a few feet from the wall.

"I believe this is yours," Prowl's voice drifted from behind it. His head soon appeared, looking at them questioningly.

The twins let out an air of relief. "Many thanks, Prowl, sir!" the chirped, running over. Bumblebee followed.

It wasn't just Prowl who had caught it, though. Jazz was standing next to him. "You cats want to tell us what you're doing with this thing?" he asked.

"It is being a surprise!" they repeated what they had told Bumblebee, pushing the snowball away with a grunt. Bumblebee didn't blame them, it was huge.

"Well, that was a rude interruption to our sparring match," Prowl huffed.

"First one back on the roof gets a free kick?" Jazz grinned.

The black and gold ninjabot snorted at him. "Jazz, that's completely juvenile."

"Aw, you're no fun," Jazz pouted.

Prowl smiled a bit wickedly. "I said it was juvenile, I never said I disagreed." Without another warning, he took off for the warehouse.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Jazz shouted after him, taking off as well.

Bumblebee smiled a moment, but it soon faded. The memory of Longarm was painful. He was a Decepticon spy. He didn't really care about the small, yellow bot. He was just _using _him. An innocent bot not only went to the stockade, but also became a techno-organic monster because of it. Sure, Bumblebee still thought Wasp was a jerk during their time in Autobot boot camp, but he didn't deserve to be punished for a crime he didn't commit.

Longarm was the one who deserved it all. And he'd get it, if Bumblebee had any say. Not only for what he did to Wasp, and not only for being a Decepticon. No, this was personal. He'd pay because he lied to Bumblebee. Pay because it had hurt.


	3. Responsibility

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Transformers or any place or character associated with it. They belong to Hasbro. And I don't own Detroit. That belongs to…well…Detroit, lol.

**Note**: Haha, I forgot to do the Read & Review acknowledgments here when I first wrote it, lol. Here they are now!

**Note 2**: So, I got the AllSpark Almanac, and was looking through and realized that I completely warped the layout of the Autobots' home warehouse/factory/whatever it is. Unfortunately, I have it so messed up that there's no way for me to fix it without having to rewrite entire scenes, or in some cases chapters. So we're going to say for the sake of my sanity that my layout is how it is. Cause I'm _not_ rewriting this damn thing.

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**ShimmeringJade**: I know, it's hard to find fanfics that can highlight more than a few characters. That's what I'm attempting here, and I hope I'm succeeding. On another note, I seem to get a _lot_ of requests for Sentinel torture, lol. Not that I blame ya'll. X3**  
Shadowwolf75**: No, unfortunately Shockwave will not be making an appearance in this fanfic. He will, however, play a role (as will everyone else) in the sequel fanfic "Control".**  
Independent.C.**: Well, now that you've read pretty much the whole fic past here I suppose the question is moot, but I'll still answer it for anyone else who's wondering and is reading this fanfic for the first time. On the question of whether or not the Jazz/Prowl is one-sided or if Prowl's just being a prude: you'll have to read and see, lol. Though I suppose that's a slightly trick question, because the answer to "is Prowl being a prude" is always "yes". But that's why we love him.**  
****Juana la Cliker-Rooster**: --giggles profusely-- I wasn't originally going to give you an individual response (though all of my reviews are equally appreciated), but I just wanted to say that I love your screen name. I had to say it out loud to get the joke, lol. Thank for the review!**  
****IronMaidenDeathX**, **Shirox**, and** narmoture**: Yes, the world needs more Longarm/Bumblebee! Help spread the love!**  
****Panthergirl29**, **Hot Rod's Girl**, **PrancingTiger86**, **StormXXX**, **Randomstrike**, **flamingmarsh**, and **Shizuka Taiyo**: Thanks so much for all of the reviews, and I'll try and be good from now on and acknowledge all of my reviewers! I love you all, and remember, reviews make me want to write more!

**Chapter 3  
Responsibility**

"Maybe if you just admitted when you're wrong, you wouldn't have to pull your team out of the mud so much!"

"And maybe if you didn't have your head so far up your tailpipe you'd see three feet in front of you!"

"Will you two keep it down, some of us are trying to work!" Ratchet snapped at the two Primes.

Sentinel and Optimus both looked at him, the latter looking sheepish. "Sorry, Ratchet. I guess we got carried away," Optimus apologized.

"You think? What were you two arguing about that started this? I tuned you out until you started screaming loud enough to online the scrapped," Ratchet asked.

"We were arguing because…! Well…" Sentinel trailed off, developing a concentrated look. "Whatever it was, he started it!"

"What? I did not!" Optimus argued.

"Hey!" Ratchet barked. "Do I have to separate you like sparklings?!"

"No…" the two Primes both answered.

"Good! I'm going to my workshop, I hear one raised vocal processor while I'm there, you two are both going to recharge early, understood?!"

"Yes, Ratchet."

"Good!"

As the old bot marched off, the Primes looked at each other. "What the slag just happened?" Sentinel finally spoke.

"I think we just got our bumpers handed to us, as Bumblebee would say," Optimus couldn't help but grin.

"That's what I mean though, you let your men walk all over you," Sentinel pointed out.

"Oh, and you were the picture of command against him," Optimus scoffed.

"Hey, at least I can command my own men. When's the last time that little yellow glitch did what he was told without argument?"

"That 'little yellow glitch' has a name, Sentinel. His name is Bumblebee. I'd think you'd remember it, since you gave it to him."

Sentinel glowered at him. "You're changing the subject. Why don't you just answer my question?" he challenged.

"He gets his jobs done," Optimus argued.

"_Without argument_?" the other Prime repeated.

"…Often enough," the red and blue bot settled on the not-right-but-not-wrong answer.

Sentinel wasn't satisfied, though. "Name once." Optimus stayed silent. "That's what I thought."

"Yeah, because your new recruits are shining examples of self-control," Optimus couldn't resist a stab back.

"Those two respect me. They know who their commanding officer is, and they do as they're told _without argument_," he emphasized the last part.

"What about when they're not being commanded, though?" Optimus smirked. "How respectful are they then?"

"I don't like what you're implying," Sentinel narrowed his optics.

"I'm surprised you agreed to take in another set of twins. You know, after what happened when you first became a drill sergeant. What did you name them again? Oh yeah, that's right. Skidd and Drift," Optimus said thoughtfully. "I hear they gave you quite a bit of grief."

"Grief nothing," Sentinel groaned. "Meeting them was the only pleasant part of knowing them. Those twins were terrors. Jetfire and Jetstorm are a walk in the park next to those two."

"See? No one's a perfect leader," Optimus pointed out.

The other Prime botched, caught off guard by the logic of it. But he refused to be wrong in a debate with his old rival. "I still handled them better than you do that dysfunctional bumbler. And what about your ninjabot? You practically let him have free reign!"

"That's not true!" Optimus took offense. "I have a perfectly fine hold on--"

"Excuse us!" Prowl, dashing in from the front, vaulted over the two Primes to keep from hitting them. Jazz was in close pursuit, doing the same. However, when he did he managed to vault past the black and gold ninjabot as well, landing in front of him.

"Sorry, too slow, Prowl!" he called behind him.

"Maybe like this, but not…" Prowl suddenly turned to his motorcycle mode and zoomed past, "in vehicle mode!"

"Hey, that's not fair! I can't turn vehicle in this place!" Jazz called after him.

As soon as they were gone, Optimus found he couldn't finish the sentence. Not honestly, anyway. So he sighed. "Look, I'm sure you didn't come all the way here to discuss my leadership skills when Cybertron is in need of your services there," he settled on.

Sentinel frowned. He was enjoying poking fun at his former academy buddy. He knew it'd come to this, eventually, though he really didn't want to admit why they were there. So he cleared his throat and tried to put it in a way that would satisfy him. Which meant pushing the blame anywhere but himself. "To put this as honestly and fairly as possible, without shifting any blame, while leaving this planet's atmosphere during our last visit, the prisoners that _your_ ninjabot helped capture escaped captivity and returned to Earth." Yes, that would do.

"What?!" Optimus stood up in surprise and anger. "The Decepticons escaped your ship?! If you were still in orbit of Earth, why didn't you come back to stop them? Or at least give us a warning?"

Sentinel looked indignant. Optimus was acting like it was _his_ fault. "We couldn't come back, as you said Cybertron needed me there. And contacting you didn't come across my processor at the time. By the time I thought about it I was already halfway to Cybertron and figured you had to have known by then."

"Yeah, thanks for that," Optimus said bitterly. He sat back down, seething. It was just like Sentinel to blow them off like that. "So why are you here now? I mean, couldn't you have sent someone else to help? You _are_ the big bot now, right?"

"Of course I am!" the other Prime huffed. "I would have just sent someone else, but I felt it was my responsibility to return and bring those heathens back personally."

"In other words Jazz probably guilted you into it, right?" Optimus challenged. Sentinel cringed, causing him to smirk. Hit the nail on the head. "How did they escape, anyway?"

"The official report says it was a malfunction in the equipment," Sentinel replied.

"Let me guess. The unofficial report is that Lockdown is a sneaky bastard and gave them a little help out the door," Optimus guessed. Sentinel cringed again. Optimus was two for two.

"What's a bastard?" Sentinel asked.

The blue and red prime shrugged. "Earth term. Don't change the subject. Did you see which way they escaped to?"

"No, and we were too busy fixing the hole in our ship to worry about it. The good news is the bounty bot Swindle was still stuck in park when it happened. He's safe and sound in his own little cell in the stockade. With any luck that time-stop will last his sentence and he'll be the quietest prisoner we ever had."

"Good luck with that. If our luck's any indication he'll be unfreezing within the deca-cycle," Optimus muttered.

"Well, don't jinx it," Sentinel snapped.

"Look, if he does then the Cybertron forces will take care of it," Optimus pointed out. "We need to worry about the Decepticons that have returned to here."

"At least we can agree on that," Sentinel nodded. "We can do a full sweep of the city, since they're most likely to return to areas they're familiar with to wait for their master."

"Who's likely to return to where?"

Optimus looked over Sentinel's shoulder. Bumblebee stood there, staring at them blankly. "I thought you were going to watch the twins do…whatever they're doing," the red and blue leader commented.

"I was, but then they almost flattened me. I think I was safer in here," the little yellow bot grinned. He moved to the table they sat at and sat down. "So, what are we talking about?"

"_We_ weren't talking about anything," Sentinel snapped. "_Optimus and I_ were discussing Prime business."

Optimus gave Sentinel a warning look. He needed to back off. Bumblebee was obviously just bored if he was showing interest in official business, but he had every right to know what was going on. So Optimus answered, "The Decepticons Sentinel's team were bringing back to Cybertron escaped and returned to Earth."

"The ones you recruited the bounty bot to catch?" Bumblebee sounded surprised. He also, unfortunately, sounded amused. "I knew that would come back to bite you in the fender, Sentinel, but I didn't know it would be that bad."

"Can it, cog!" Sentinel warned. "I'm still your superior! And I still haven't repaid you for the snowball!"

It was Optimus' turn to look amused. "Let it go, Sentinel. He was just having a little fun."

"Yeah, you should try it sometime," Bumblebee added.

"Fun my tailpipe," Sentinel muttered. He then spoke up. "To return to the subject at hand, we'll do a full sweep of the city and it's outlying areas. We're bound to pick up something."

"Not in the next week you're not," Bumblebee spoke up. When they looked at him, he sighed. "Don't you guys watch TV? The weather report said a huge freak snowstorm's going to be hitting Detroit. This snow's already playing cyber-ball with our sensors, imagine how it's going to be when the snow kicks in."

"Great, so we came all this way for nothing?" Sentinel groaned. "I _hate_ this planet."

"It's not so bad," Optimus pointed out. "If we're unable to do anything because of the snowstorm, the Decepticons won't be able to either. Especially after just escaping, they're going to need time to rest, and they don't have a ship. They'll still be here when the snowstorm's over. Besides, now you get to observe Christmas."

"What the pit is Christmas?" the other Prime felt inclined to ask.

"Christmas is awesome!" Bumblebee declared. "It's a day when this fat, red guy travels around the entire world and gives everyone presents!"

Sentinel wasn't sure how to respond to this. There was simply so much _wrong_ with that statement. So instead he looked at Optimus.

The red and blue bot shook his head, smiling. "Hey, Bumblebee, why don't you go confirm the weather?"

"But I just told you, the weather report said-" Bumblebee stopped arguing as Optimus gave him a look. He then shrugged. "K. But it's gonna be the same." He ran over to the concrete couch and started flipping channels, looking for the weather channel.

"I swear, that kid's processing unit is cracked," Sentinel growled.

Optimus shook his head again. "No, actually, according to Earth customs he's right. But he takes it from the perspective of the Earth children. It's actually a religious holiday, celebrating the birth of a man called Jesus Christ. He was supposed to be the son of God, if I recall correctly."

"What makes this 'God' guy so special that his _kids_ get celebratory holidays?"

"Sentinel, 'God' is the Earth name of 'Primus'," Optimus pointed out.

"…oh. Well, that explains it," Sentinel laughed nervously. Then he waved his servos, confused. "Wait, wait, why would Primus create someone so important and make him _organic_? I mean, there's even more wrong with that than the concept of a fat, red organic traveling fast enough to give presents to everyone on this planet in one solar cycle."

"A night, actually, so about six or seven megacycles."

"That's even less likely!"

"Look," Optimus reasoned, "We don't claim to fully understand human customs or lore ourselves. In fact, there are so many contradicting human customs I'm not sure which ones are right or wrong. But we're not here to judge them. We're here to protect them."

"Yeah, yeah…" Sentinel huffed. "What are we going to do about this weather, though? We'll be stuck here! If this snow gets any worst the ship won't fly!"

"Calm down, it won't hurt to spend a little time relaxing."

"It's confirmed!" Bumblebee declared, running back over. "We're boxed in here with you guys for the next week!"

"Whoa, we're stuck here?" Jazz and Prowl entered again. "Awesome, I wanted to see this 'Christmas' thing Prowl told me about."

"Weren't you two doing ninja stuff on the roof?" Bumblebee asked.

"Got too slippery. Apparently the lull in the weather caused the temperature to drop again and caused more ice patches on the roof," Prowl explained. He shot Jazz a look as the other ninjabot gave a conspicuous chuckle. "At any rate, during our exchange of information Jazz told me that Blitzwing and the other Decepticons escaped. Apparently by the aid of the same bot that helped you catch them." His visor flashed at Sentinel.

"Hey, I had no reason to believe he could hack our computer!" the Prime defended himself.

"You let him provide his own stasis cuffs, didn't you? That kind of mistake is what costs you everything!" Prowl argued.

"Yeah, because your track record with Lockdown is spectacular! He's gotten away from you, what, three times? You joined him once, _and_ that entire set of mods is from his ship, isn't it?" Sentinel shot back.

Prowl ground his dentals to keep himself in control. Sentinel had dealt out a low blow.

"Hey now, guys, let's just chill," Jazz tried to keep peace.

"That was out of line, Sentinel!" Optimus snapped.

"Tell that to your ninjabot! He's completely out of line!"

"You're the one who's going mental on him!" Bumblebee argued.

"Oh, so he can point out my mistakes and I can't!" Sentinel huffed.

"Be our guest and point out mistakes! But some mistakes aren't called for!" Optimus and Sentinel now stood up, staring each other down.

"Hey, now…!" Jazz began. But he didn't finish.

"All of you, shut yer traps, now!"

The group turned to the door that lead to the hall. Ratchet was standing there, glaring at them all. "I thought I told you not to disturb my work!"

"He started it!" Sentinel pointed at Prowl. The ninjabot simply glared back.

"Sit down! The lot of you!" Ratchet snapped.

There was so much force behind his voice no one argued. They all pulled up a chair at the table and sat down.

"Now, I want this from the beginning. Jazz, since you're the only one who wasn't yelling, why don't _you_ explain what's going on?" Ratchet requested forcefully.

Jazz stood up. "While we were leaving the planet during our last visit, our computer was hacked by the bounty bot Lockdown. He had booby trapped the stasis cuffs he used on the criminals he helped us apprehend. The cuffs gave him a link into the system and he disengaged both the cuffs and the force fields on the cells. Four of the prisoners, Blitzwing, Lugnut, Ramjet, and Sunstorm, escaped by blasting a hole in the side of the ship. We had been near orbit and they returned here to Earth. The only criminal left was Swindle, who is currently being held, still time-frozen, in the Cybertronian stockade. We would have come back for them at the time, but we had to patch up the ship and return to Cybertron as soon as possible due to the current status of Ultra Magnus." He gave the report as if he'd been talking to Ultra Magnus himself.

"Alright, now tell me what started this screaming match," Ratchet said.

"Well…" Jazz hesitated. He didn't want to be the one to cause further tension in the group.

"Fine, sit." Jazz did as he was told. "Optimus, _you_ want to tell me what started this one?"

Optimus debated how to say it. In truth, while Sentinel was the easy one to blame for this, Prowl had shot the first comment. Then again, he had just been commenting on a mistake _made_ by Sentinel. It was the latter who acted unnecessarily.

"It was my fault," Prowl spoke up. Everyone looked at him.

Ratchet raised an optic ridge. Prowl, while understanding the importance of taking responsibility of his own actions, wasn't who the medibot was hoping would take the blame for this. Honestly, though he wouldn't admit this shot of immaturity, he was rather hoping to blame Sentinel.

"Alright, explain how you were at fault," Ratchet replied.

"…I was out of line. I had no right to speak to Sentinel the way I did. I shouldn't have acted as though his mistake was so… shocking." He didn't look at them as he spoke. Everyone else, though, stared back. Even Sentinel couldn't think of a thing to say. "I will retire to my room for now to cool off and analyze my behavior. I suppose for the night will be an adequate punishment. Would you like to add to it?"

"No, I suppose that will be… acceptable," Ratchet said slowly. "That is, if our superiors don't have anything to say about it."

Optimus shook his head quickly. Sentinel simply stared, jaw dropped.

"Good. I bid you good night, then." With that he stood and left the room, still not looking at anyone.

After a moment, they all looked at each other. "Did… Prowl just punish himself for justifiably talking back to Sentinel?" Bumblebee asked, unsure of what just happened.

Ratchet looked at Sentinel with a look that could penetrate steel. "What did you do?" he asked coldly.

"I didn't do anything!" Sentinel finally found his voice. "You heard him! He was out of line! He deserves to be punished!" They all stared at him bitterly. Someone had been out of line alright, but the one who had punished himself wasn't the one who had faulted.


	4. Surprise

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Transformers Animated or any characters or places affiliated with it. Please don't sue me, as they all belong to Hasbro.

**Chapter Warnings: **Mild Jet-twincest, nothing graphic, but still enough for the warning to be needed. Oh, and a teeny-bit of Jazz/Prowl.

**I totally forgot to acknowledge my readers in the third chapter! D8 I'm so sorry! I won't forget this chapter, though! 8D And sorry this chapter took so long to put up. I had writers block for a while, and it admittedly took a turn even I didn't expect when the block was broken, lol.**

**UPDATE****: Okay, I did the R&RA on the last chapter now, so everything's all hunky-dory! Thanks for your patience!**

**Read & Review Acknowledgments:**

**CherryBlossom713****: **Wow, what a review, lol. I think you just gave the whole synopsis of the first three chapters in one sentence. _Impressive_. Thank you so much, and don't worry, all that you've seen so far? It can only get crazier. X3

**Stormx****: **I GOT CAUGHT! X3 No, lol, Drift isn't a reference to the IDW Comic Drift, though I'm impressed you know who that is. On the contrary, I'd completely forgotten that there _was_ a Drift in the actual continuity at the time of his creation. No, my Drift is completely original. Well…I can't say anything else without spoiling anything for my other fanfic I'm working on.

**Winnifred Daquer****: **Eeee! I'm still trying to get over the fact that you took the time to read my fic back! Thank you so much for the review and everything! I'm working on the sequel to yours, I promise. ;-) Anyone who's reading this, go read Winnifred's lovely fic Bathwater! You know you want to!

**DreamFeathers****:** Haha, doesn't Optimus _always_ seem to be in the middle of things, right where doesn't want to be? lol

**PrancingTiger86****, ****Independent.C.****, ****MusicLover48****, ****Ri2**, **Randomstrike****, ****flamingmarsh**** and ****Shizuka Taiyo****: **Thanks for your reviews. Keep reading, if you please! ;-)

Chapter 4  
Surprise

"Just a little more, brother!" Jetstorm announced. The snow was calming down, so the snowball was decidedly finished. All for the best, though, as it was now hard to push up the slope they ascended. It was twice their size and near impossible to push without their servos plunging into it.

Finally, they reached the top, huffing to keep their strained systems from overheating. "This was being… harder than we thought…" Jetfire panted.

"I know, brother. We are just not used to being working without our powers," Jetstorm assured him. "But it is being worth it."

"You is right. They are not knowing what hit them, yes?"

"Very yes, brother."

They fell into silence, resting in the snow. Gazing up at the sky, Jetfire leaned against his brother. While their bond was strong, it was at its best when they were touching. At that point all of their thoughts and feelings interwove and found their way to each other. Jetstorm felt his brother's gaze wander from the clouds to the city. Bright and colorful, especially this time of year. Bumblebee said it was because of 'Christmas', a day where humans gave each other presents. It was in a few days and the twins hoped to be there for it.

Jetfire heard his brother's voice, even though he wasn't speaking. It curled around and enveloped him, warm and soothing. He was thinking of the work they did, of the special surprise they had planned. But then it wandered to before they were Elite Guard. When they were engineer bots, the day of the accident.

The orange and white twin shifted and nuzzled reassurances to his troubled brother. _'Stop,' _his mind whispered. _'It was being long ago.'_

"It was a little more than an orbital cycle," Jetstorm corrected aloud. Jetfire looked at him indignantly. Not because his brother was arguing but because he'd interrupted the bond. "Sorry," he apologized. At another look he quickly apologized again, but this time through his processor.

Jetfire smiled contentedly and curled up with his brother again. They both needed the bond. It gave them stability, and more importantly completed them. They were two halves of the same whole. Yin and yang, as Jazz liked to say. Opposite but the same. Fire and ice. Want and need.

The last thought pulsed around them like an electric current. They looked at each other. Caressed. Kissed. Moaned. Then Jetstorm yelped, dislodging his brother into the snow. Jetfire looked at him, hurt and confused. It wasn't a game they hadn't played before. In fact _most_ of their bonds ended in passionate fits of wrestling glossas and desperately petting servos. It was simply part of being so closely connected.

He was about to ask what he did wrong when their still clinging bond told him to look down. What he saw explained it. The snow was rapidly melting around him as he lost track of his heat during their spell of pleasure. It wasn't unusual either, in fact it was expected and a sign that his brother was doing something right. But it wasn't good under the current circumstances.

"The snowball!" he yelped. Indeed, a part of it began melting under his heat. In response he quickly retreated to save their precious project.

Jetstorm got to work quickly, using his wind and ice turbines to save it. Before long the damage was repaired and he turned to his brother. Jetfire had backed himself to a fence and was holding his knees to his chest shamefully. The ground around him was bare of snow and as dry as summer.

The blue and yellow twin hurried over, hugging his brother close. "Do not be looking like that," he scolded. "See? I am fixing it." He gestured to the snowball.

"I… I am still not able to control it, brother," Jetfire said quietly.

This obviously wasn't about the snowball. "You're not _supposed_ to control it when we play," Jetstorm pointed out.

His brother shook his head. "I am meaning at all. I should be able to be calming it down now, but I cannot stop the heat."

Jetstorm smiled and hugged him tighter. Jetfire felt the wind and ice surround him and his systems cooled again. "That is what I am here for," the blue and yellow twin cooed. "You will control it one day. Until then, I am being here for you." He then let go, standing up and holding out a servo. "So, are you ready to be giving them the surprise of their lives?" he grinned.

Jetfire looked at the hand, then smiled back, taking it. "I am always being ready, brother."

()()()()()()

The twins peeked inside of the warehouse. A moment ago they thought they could hear yelling, but now they just saw everyone staring angrily at the blue and yellow Prime. That couldn't be good. From what they could tell, this might be good for the other bots, not just pointless amusement for themselves. "It looks like they are needing to cool down, brother," Jetfire pointed out.

"Agreed, brother," Jetstorm replied. "Shall we be helping them?"

"Oh, very much so."

They entered the room silently, afraid if they were too loud or quick the tense air would snap like a rubber-band. It was simply so… _quiet_. It was a bit disturbing. What could have happened that would cause this kind of thick tension? Wait, wasn't there supposed to be seven other Autobots inside at the time? They knew they saw Jazz and Prowl together earlier, so it was odd that the former was here and the latter was missing.

They shook it off, though. These guys needed to, as Jazz liked to say, "chill". And whether they liked it or not, 'chill' was precisely what they were going to do.

"Excusing our interrupting!" they chorused at the same time. Everyone turned to look at them.

"Hey, cats, what've you two been up to?" Jazz asked, seeming glad to have a distraction from whatever had happened in there.

"We have been making the surprise," Jetstorm replied.

"But our surprise is being done," Jetfire added. "Pleasing to be coming outside to see!"

"I don't have time for this," Sentinel growled. The others looked at each other as well. The request for their attention seemed very poorly timed, even though they didn't want to openly admit to agreeing with the blue and yellow prime.

"Please?" the twins chorused. "We will not be bothering anymore, we promise!"

Optimus was the one to finally stand up. "Alright, I don't know about them, but I'll come see your surprise."

"I'll come too!" Bumblebee agreed quickly. He wanted nothing more than to escape the building tension of the room.

"Yeah, who knows? I might dig it," Jazz grinned, following their lead.

"Fine, if it'll keep you two from bothering me," Ratchet sighed.

"Fine! Whatever!" Sentinel snapped, standing up as well. He didn't want to be left out.

"Great, please to be following us!" the twins once again chorused. They led the way outside, stopping in front of the building, next to the ramp.

"Okay, what's the surprise?" Jazz asked as he and the others joined them.

The twins both pointed away from the ramp at the cloudy sky over the Detroit night skyline. "Pleasing to be looking that way!" they requested.

The others obliged, but couldn't see anything. "What're we looking for?" Sentinel asked. "There's nothing there but clouds."

"Yeah, what's going on?" Bumblebee asked. There was no response, though. "Guys?" He turned around to where the twins had been a moment ago just in time to see the giant snowball barreling down on them. Before he could react though, it rolled them all up, everyone yelping in surprise. The ball kept rolling with it's helpless victims until it finally hit the wall on the far end of the warehouse lot, which also had a large snowdrift under it to provide a soft landing.

Jazz was lucky enough to land right-side up, shaking snow off himself calmly. Optimus popped out, optics wide, looking around for the others. Ratchet had landed upside-down against the wall, but wasn't covered by the snow, face twisted into an angry scowl. Sentinel emerged seconds later, looking about as amused as the medic. Unfortunately for poor Bumblebee, he was half-buried in the snow upside-down, legs flailing in the air as he tried to push himself free.

Those who didn't have their head under the snow looked up to see the two Jet twins hovering in the air, playful grins plastered on their faces. "SURPRISE!"

"You… you… when I catch you two I'm throwing you in holding!" Sentinel roared, jumping out of the snow and taking off after them. The twins yelped, laughing, and took off into the air where he couldn't catch them.

"I'm going back to my room," Ratchet growled, righting himself. "If he manages to catch those two, tell them I'm not fixing their bumpers when he dents them." He then left as Optimus stood up, brushing the snow off of himself. Despite himself, the red and blue Autobot leader grinned. This was exactly the distraction they needed to forget about the events inside.

Jazz sighed and shook his head. He should have seen this coming. Those twins were always looking for ways to push the line without crossing it. Of course Sentinel, being strictly by the book, didn't tend to be able to see the difference. The white and black ninjabot didn't see the harm in a little fun, though.

Speaking of bots who liked a little fun, Jazz moved over to Bumblebee, who still hadn't gotten loose. He grabbed the flailing legs and pulled the little yellow bot out so that he was holding him upside down by his pedes. "You alright, kiddo?" Jazz asked.

Bumblebee shook himself off, not seeming to mind being held upside down, and spat some snow out before grinning. "That was awesome! Let's do it again!"

Optimus couldn't help but let out a laugh. "How about we don't and say we did?" he suggested.

Bumblebee stuck his tongue out and Jazz let him go. "It's amazing. They spent megacycles making that thing just to destroy it in nanokliks," the ninjabot commented, looking at the mess of snow around his pedes. "Why?"

The yellow bug shrugged, picking up a handful of snow. "I dunno, cause it was fun, probably." He then patted it into a ball and chucked it. With almost expert precision the ball flew through the air and beamed Sentinel, who had been yelling at the twins from his place on the ground, square in the back of the head.

Sentinel whipped around, growling. "I know that was you, glitch! That's the second time today!"

Bumblebee grinned, waving his servos by his audio receptors and sticking his glossa out with a, "Pbbbbbtt!"

"Why you-!" Sentinel didn't finish the sentence as another snowball hit him on the chestplate. "Hey!" he turned to the new culprit this time: Optimus. "Come on, I expect it from him, but _you_?"

Optimus was laughing. "What can I say? You need to lighten up."

Sentinel was about to say something when two more snowballs hit him in the back. He turned on the twins. "_That's it!_" he declared, picking up a handful of snow and lobbing it at them.

Before long, illuminated by nothing but the outside lights of the warehouse and laughing like sparklings, the snow now falling heavy in large flakes again, the five bots found themselves in an all-out war. It was every bot for themselves, and they forgot everything that had happened. Forgot their worries. Forgot unpleasant memories. Forgot that there was someone who couldn't enjoy the cold night and the pleasant feeling of carefree bliss.

Jazz smiled, backing away from the scene. He didn't engage in the war, though he desperately wanted to. But it didn't seem right to enjoy the night like this without Prowl. The other ninjabot may have been proud and full of self-proclaimed maturity beyond his millennia, but he would have enjoyed the escape from the worries of this war-filled era. And besides, whether or not Prowl would admit it, he needed someone to confide in.

()()()()()()

Prowl sat cross-legged under the slumbering tree that adorned his room. He had eased himself into a gentle meditation, not wanting anything to disturb his thoughts. He was brooding over what Sentinel had told him. _"Yeah, because your track record with Lockdown is spectacular!"_ Prowl involuntarily cringed. Sentinel had been right. Calling the Prime out on the idiocy of his actions concerning the bounty bot had been calling the kettle black, as the humans liked to say. His own encounters with Lockdown were nothing to brag about. _"You know, you remind me of someone. Oh, yeah. Me."_ Prowl physically shook his head this time. No, he couldn't think of that. It had taken him so long to finally drive that line of thought from his mind after his second encounter with Lockdown. However…

"Hey, look out!" Prowl onlined an optic in annoyance, Bumblebee's voice penetrating his meditation. They were outside of his room. He could see them past the tree and the crumbled wall, running and playing in the snow like carefree sparklings. Forgetting about him. He didn't mind, honestly, not wanting them to fret over him.

"Hey," that one came from his door this time.

Prowl turned his head back around, gazing coolly at the black and white ninjabot. "Is there something you need?" he asked.

Jazz shrugged, walking in. "Not really. Just wanted to see how you were doing. You all gave us quite a surprise back there, taking the blame like that."

"I was simply taking responsibility for my actions." Prowl once again offlined the optics behind his visor. He could hear Jazz getting closer and wasn't surprised by the gentle metallic sound of the other ninjabot sitting next to him.

"Not that that isn't honorable and noble of you and everything, but just didn't seem, well, _you_," Jazz's voice drifted into his left audio receptor.

"And what do you presume to know about _me_?" Prowl answered curtly.

Jazz was a bit taken aback by this response. It was true, they hadn't known each other very long. But there was a connection, a kindred bond between them. Prowl had never spoken so coldly to him before. Well, that wasn't completely true. That day when Jazz took the chance that almost cost him the friendship he'd built with the black and gold cyberninja…

_Prowl hadn't pushed him away, but the look on his face when Jazz pulled back said it all. And though it communicated everything quite clearly, he verbalized his rejection anyway. "What was that?"_

_Jazz looked a bit sheepish, scratching the back of his head. "It was… well… a kiss."_

"_I know that," Prowl muttered. "I meant, what was it for? Why did you do that?"_

_The Elite Guard officer took a deep breath, trying to decide how to word it. Obviously, he'd moved way too fast. "It was cause I, you know, I just thought…"_

"_You thought wrong." The words bit hard into Jazz's spark, causing him to cringe. He looked at his fellow ninjabot and regretted it, even though while angry he was still a wonderful sight to behold. His pursed lips were just so perfect. That is, until they opened again, and the words that left them were so cold Jazz could have sworn he felt his hydraulics freeze. "I'm going to choose to forget that you did that. And if you want to sustain contact with me, I suggest you do the same."_

Jazz sighed. The day was practically hardwired into his processor. He never wanted to see a look like that on Prowl's gorgeous, thin faceplate again. So of course, by universal law, he had to say something to cause history to repeat itself. Though he wasn't even sure what he'd done wrong this time.

"Look, Prowl, I'm sorry. If there's something botherin' you, I just wanna help," he tried.

Prowl opened his mouth again, but before he spoke he could see Jazz physically cringe. So instead he sighed, pushing his servos under his visor to rub his optics in an attempt to calm down. "Look, I appreciate your concern. Really. But right now the best way you can help me is be leaving me _alone_."

It was Jazz's turn to sigh as he stood up, seeing that anymore attempts would be in vain. "Alright, I can take a hint. It was worth a shot, though." Prowl made a slight 'humph' sound. Jazz rolled his optics behind his visor. How did he manage to fall for such a prude? "Before I go, just… I just need you to know that you shouldn't let anything Sentinel says get to you. He has a need to blow off steam, and a lot of times that means sayin' things that aren't really called for."

"And I think you should hear your own words from the last time you were here," Prowl countered with a smirk appreciative of irony. "I never thought I'd see _you_ standing up for Sentinel."

Jazz blinked before smiling back. "Don't look too far into it," he chuckled. "It's just, well… he's my commander. I guess sometimes I just _want_ an excuse for him to be like he is."

Prowl looked thoughtful for a moment, before returning to the bitter look he held before. "Now, if you wouldn't mind…"

Jazz shrugged, shaking his head. He was enjoying the moment, as Prowl seemed to almost have changed his mind. But he should have known it seemed too good to be true, so he turned around and left with a, "See ya."

Prowl sighed and shuttered his optics again, trying to return to his meditation after the interruption. Completely honestly, he hadn't _wanted_ to send Jazz away. But… no, he would never understand. He couldn't let Jazz get too close.

"Heads up!" The yell that penetrated his thoughts was followed by a light 'poof' against the back of his head as something made contact. Prowl didn't even bother to cover his annoyance as he turned around and glared at the culprit, making a slight growling sound in the back of his vocals. The little yellow mech was staring at him from the opening between the tree and crumbled wall of his room. "Uh… heheh…" Bumblebee looked a bit sheepish, not wanting to upset the already annoyed ninjabot. "Um… sorry…"

"Do you _mind_?" Prowl snapped. "I'm _trying_ to meditate on my actions."

Bumblebee pouted in response at the verbal assault. "Hey, what's there to meditate on? Sentinel's an aft-head and you told him off accordingly. I don't see what you did wrong."

"I heard that!" Sentinel's voice barked from somewhere on the other side of the lot. Bumblebee ducked, laughing, as a snowball sailed over his head. He then gathered another one and ran off.

Prowl watched him leave and sighed, finally able to return to his meditation in peace. But just before he cleared his mind, he couldn't help but mumble to the space his young teammate had abandoned in the thick of snow-battle. "Consider yourself lucky you don't…"


	5. Past

**Disclaimer: **I OWN NOTHING. STOP ASKING.

**Chapter Warnings:** Mild Longarm/Bumblebee, Teasingly Optimus/Rodimus (that'll make sense when you get to it), some drinking ("overcharging")

**A/N: **Okay, so I'm not completely satisfied with Prowl's flashback in this. But somehow, he was the only one I couldn't think of a really good flashback for without making it short. Oh, well.

**A/N 2: **Cameos, cameos, and more cameos! And due to this, I'm proposing a CONTEST! First person to correctly guess the G1 exclusive character to make a cameo in this chapter, you get a special prize! UPDATE: DING DING DING WE HAVE A WINNER! Flarey Phoenix guessed right, our G1 cameo was Nightbird who was created by the Japanese in G1!

**Read & Review Acknowledgements:**

**StormX - **You said the magic words! "The twins" (Also known as the Jettwins) and "Kittens"! --glomps-- As your reward you may name the plot for a Jettwins fanfic and I shall write it in dedication!**  
CherryBlossom713 - **Haha, if Prowl's feelings weren't confusing I wouldn't be writing this well enough. Don't worry, things will become clearer in chapters to come. And yes, the spoiler you gave in your review was quite sad, lol.**  
Evil E. Evil - **You asked for more Longarm/Shockwave, so here you go. Just hope you don't mind the little yellow Bee attached to him, lol.**  
MusicLover48**, **PrancingTiger86**, **Sena-Kun**, **flamingmarsh**, and **Shizuka Taiyou - **Thank you for your reviews! Remember, everyone, as long as people keep reviewing I'll keep writing!

Chapter 5  
Past

Bumblebee yawned as he collapsed onto his berth. The twins' 'surprise', the snowball fight, the entire _day_ had exhausted his systems. The only thing that would have made the day better would be if Sari and Bulkhead had been here. Those two would have loved all of this. He hadn't had this much fun in centuries. At least, not since his days in Autobot Boot Camp. Not that there had been a whole lot of fun to be had there, but there was a few solar cycles where Sentinel Prime made the best announcement they'd heard since arriving there…

**::Bumblebee::**

"Alright, cogs, I've been called out for my Century-Annual Review of Command and Conduct by the council," Sentinel Minor barked at the lined-up recruits. "While I'm sure I'll pass with perfect scores as usual, it's required I arrive there in a timely fashion. I didn't have time to find a suitable replacement, so Ivee will be in charge of making sure you stick to your training while I'm gone." He nodded back to the rusty, old medibot. She looked at the recruits with her usual air of boredom. "You will treat her with the same respect you treat any other sergeant. Understood?!"

"Sir, yes, sir!" the cadets chorused, saluting.

"Good! I will return in three orbital cycles! Dismissed!" As soon as the word left his mouth he turned on his heel and headed out for his review. The recruits watched him leave, and when they were sure he was gone they broke into cheers.

"Three days of freedom without the Sarge!" Bumblebee whooped. "I never thought I'd be this happy to see somebot leave!" It had been not long ago that he received his new leg after the teamwork exercise incident. Of course, despite his recent recovery, as soon as he got back Sentinel had pushed him twice as hard, which attributed to his elation at the Minor's absence.

"Hey, you forget about me already?" a voice barked. All of them stopped and looked at Ivee, who was glowering at them. "I want ya to drop and give me 30, now!" There was a long pause as they simply stared at her in shock. She couldn't be serious, could she? "Nah, I'm just kiddin'. I don't give a frag what you guys do while he's gone, as long as ya don't end up in my repair bay. This is the closest thing I've gotten to a vacation in millennia, so if one of ya injures yerself yer either repairin' yerself or waitin' 'til he gets back for me ta repair ya, got it?" Nope. They should have known she wouldn't do actual work while Sentinel was gone.

"Yes, ma'am!" they all cheered, scattering.

Bulkhead, the only one a bit disappointed that they wouldn't be training, retired to his berth to review some of his datapads on spacebridge mechanics. Wasp and Ironhide wandered off, conspicuously in the direction of Sentinel's quarters, assumably to do something they probably wouldn't have gotten away with in a million stellar cycles if the sergeant had been there.

"Wow, how lucky are…?" Bumblebee started, but then trailed off as Longarm, whom he had been talking to, just walked away. "H-hey! Wait up!" he called, running after him.

Longarm slowed down a bit, but didn't stop. "Is there something you need, Bumblebee?"

The little yellow bot was a bit taken aback. "I just, I dunno… I wanted to know if you'd like to hang out. I mean, it's not often we get the opportunity to do whatever we want without Loudmouth Minor breathing down our necks."

The other bot gave him a long look, seeming just as surprised. "Er, well, I had been planning on getting some work done that he'd asked me to do. You know, I never had time before without his training interrupting me."

"You have three days to do it! Pleeeeeease?"

Longarm stared him down a moment before sighing, giving into the large, blue optics staring at him. "Alright. One cube. But I really do have to get some work done." The yellow mech pouted, but accepted it.

()()()

A megacycle later, Bumblebee and Longarm sat, laughing in one of the rec rooms of the camp. They were sitting next to each other on a large sofa. "Remember his face when Bulkhead's wrecking ball landed on him?" Bumblebee giggled loudly, faceplate red from overcharge. He was holding his second cube, which was only a third full.

Longarm laughed, "I thought he was going to pop a circuit!" He wasn't even close to overcharge, having only had a third of a cube of high-grade. The energon was a courtesy provided to the recruits so they didn't become overly stressed in their training.

"This is the first time I've relaxed like this since I got here," Bumblebee sighed, sinking back into his seat. "Sentinel has it in for me, I swear. He's not the only one…" he twitched his new leg, face falling. He then looked back up at Longarm. Whatever time he could spare during the smaller bot's wait for his new leg the other cadet had spent keeping him company. He'd even made sure he was there for the reattachment to keep Bumblebee's mind off of the grumpy femme begrudgingly working at it.

"You know," Longarm said casually, "You never have told me where you come from. What's a bot like you doing in a place like this? I mean, no offense, but you're not exactly what I call military grade."

At first Bumblebee tried to look offended. But it soon melted away, giving way for a further sad look. "I know…" he confessed. "But… I didn't have much choice, honestly." He gripped the cube in his servos, lip component quivering a bit. "Back home no one believed I'd amount to anything. There was simply nothing I could do right. It was always, 'You're too fast, you're too loud, you never pay attention or focus!' I just wanted to prove them wrong. What a joke that was."

Longarm didn't reply for a while, thinking carefully about how to respond. Finally he wrapped an arm around Bumblebee's shoulders and pulled him in. The yellow bot looked at him in surprise. Longarm just smiled before saying, "I'm going to give you some advice someone important to me gave me a long time ago. The only way to prove yourself to others is by doing something _you_ didn't think you could do. Getting through boot camp and becoming Elite Guard by believing you can is all well and good, but to do it when you _didn't_ think you could will make the moment when it happens the happiest of your lifecycle."

Bumblebee looked at him in wonder. He'd never thought of it that way. Acknowledge that he probably couldn't do it? Use that to make him happy? It may have sounded absurd to a sober bot, but to one who was plastered it was the best advice he'd ever had. Great, tempting advice…

He didn't know what had overcome him. But next thing he knew his cube clattered to the ground, spilling across the floor, and he had pushed himself up and kissed Longarm. The other seemed to go ridged against him, probably as shocked as Bumblebee felt he himself should have been. But he didn't push him away, so the smaller bot stayed there, lips pressed against his, until he felt it had been sufficient time. When he leaned back, Longarm blinked at him before scratching the back of his head and laughing awkwardly. "Wow, you must be _really_ sloshed," was all he could manage.

Bumblebee sat a moment, feeling like a complete idiot before replying, "Yeah, I am. I… I guess you should probably get back to your work you had to do."

"Yeah…" There was a lengthy moment of awkwardness before Longarm cleared his throat components. "Um, if I'm to get to work, you're going to have to move."

"Hmm?" Bumblebee looked down. He hadn't even noticed he was straddling his companion's lap. "Oh! Oh, erm, sorry." He quickly pushed himself off and watched Longarm hurry off. He looked at the spilled energon on the floor and debated cleaning it up. He decided against it, though, and instead stood up and staggered to the door. He really didn't want to be there at the moment to stew in his own humiliation.

**::End Bumblebee::**

Bumblebee's engine idled softly as he lay in recharge. The memory played in his dreams, something he wished he could forget, especially considering the new information about who Longarm really was that had come to light. He didn't remember much else of what happened during his overcharge, but he did remember that Longarm had avoided him for the rest of the break they had from Sentinel. And every time he'd seen Longarm during those few solar cycles he had felt like even more of a fool.

()()()()()()

"Hey, S.P., you wanna get a drink before you hit the berth?" Jazz asked, walking into the command center of their ship. "I think I could use a little buzz."

Sentinel waved him off. "I have to get this report done tonight or the council will be all over me when we get back."

Jazz shrugged. "Not like you can send it out in this weather, but whatever. 'Night." With that he left Sentinel alone with his paperwork.

The blue and yellow Prime stretched out his joints, feeling the bolts groan a bit in their sockets. He then leaned back over the pad and continued to jot down his first solar cycle report back on Earth. _'As soon as we arrived on Earth we were impeded by a horrible weather phenomenon which blocked our transmissions, prevented our ship from being able to take off again, and almost froze our very systems: Snow.'_ He thought for a moment before adding. _'Of course, this didn't stop us completely, as we immediately searched the area for any signs of the escaped Decepticon prisoners. We were offered no help--'_ His thoughts traveled to just a megacycle ago. He actually had _fun_ with those cogs, though he wouldn't admit it to them. But still, he erased his last sentence and revised it. _'We were offered _little_ help by the Earth posted Autobots, but still managed to do a full perimeter sweep. No sign of the Decepticon menace was found but I have the utmost confidence that we will locate them soon.'_

He sighed, clicking the pad off. It was true, he wouldn't be able to send it with the snow. It was coming down harder and faster now, and, in his processor, threatened to bury the ship with his crew in it. Of course, their impending doom wasn't his concern at the moment. His was the fact that there was no way the council would actually believe that they were held up in their reports by frozen water. It was because they just didn't like Sentinel Prime, he just knew it. They all had it in for him from the start. He found out just how much back when he had gone in for his century-annual review back when he had the yellow glitch and his huge friend in his camp.

**::Sentinel Prime::**

"Yer actually goin' in early for yer review?" Ivee asked in disbelief. "You know, that might seem a little _too_ desperate for a good one."

"Oh, shut it, rusty," Sentinel growled. Most would find it unbelievable that he would speak to another bot, especially an elder one, in such a way. But frankly, he'd worked with her long enough that they simply had that kind of relationship. "I want to make a good impression like I do every century. The fact that I'll be early is simply a formality."

"In other words, yer gonna find the big-bot Magnus and thoroughly attach your lip components to his aft and initiate suction that would make the vacuum of space jealous," the rusty red medibot scoffed.

"Look, all I need you to do is watch the cadets for a few solar cycles."

"I'm not gonna sit there and bark orders at them, if that's what yer expecting."

"I'm not expecting anything, just make sure they don't cause any trouble and you can let them down high-grade while I'm gone, okay?"

Ivee sighed. "Fine. But you owe me."

"Thanks, you're the best. Next to me, of course."

"Of course," she rolled her optics.

()()()

A few megacycles later, cadets thoroughly barked at and Ivee now in charge, Sentinel stepped into the Elite Guard Headquarters. Every time he walked through those halls he felt like he'd come home. The place was everything he dreamed of. To get a nice cushy office - preferably Ultra Magnus's - and earn all the praise he deserved from the safety and sanctity within those walls. And speaking of the big bot…

"Ultra Magnus, sir!" Sentinel saluted, hoping he'd said it with as much respect as he thought he'd mustered.

"Ah, Sentinel Minor," Ultra Magnus saluted back quickly. "Early for your review as always. That's very good, punctuality is a sign of respect for the council."

"I hold nothing if not respect for them, sir," Sentinel lied. Honestly, he didn't much care about them. All he wanted from those old rust-buckets was his once-a-century sparkling review.

"As you should. I know you hope to reach the title of Magnus some solar cycle, and as such you would be working with them more than you would most of your own soldiers," Magnus nodded. "If you respect the council, they will reciprocate in full. They are wise and fair to all Cybertronians."

Sentinel nodded absently, losing focus. Why were they spending so much time talking about the slagging council? Magnus should have been saying more about how great the Minor was. "Sir," the minor interrupted. "With all due respect, I would like to get this review done and over with." He hoped he hadn't overstepped with that one.

No, Ultra Magnus just smiled. "Understandable. No one looks forward to their century-annual review. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll do just fine."

'I'm sure too, sir. I just want to hear it and take the next couple of solars off to relax before getting back,' Sentinel thought. Instead, though, he said, "Thank you sir. Your confidence in me is truly comforting."

()()()

"Sentinel Minor." Sentinel cringed inwardly. He wouldn't say it out loud, but he really hated that voice. The mechanical, tinny voice of Perceptor, the Elite Guard's Head of Science and one of the most honored members of the council. He sometimes wanted to scream at him to go get a voice modulator before he drove everyone around him insane. "You are here for your Century-Annual Review of Command and Conduct. We have reviewed all of your files for the last century, as well as the cadets under your care. All reports have been completed and filed on time, all of your cadets have graduated with high honors, and we have found nothing to suggest that you have abused your command in any way."

'Yeah, yeah,' Sentinel thought boredly. 'Just approve the report, say I'm perfect, and let me go already.'

"However," Perceptor added, knitting his servos together at his desk, "There is one issue we would like to bring up."

Sentinel's mouth dropped. This couldn't be happening. There couldn't be a 'however'. He'd never gotten a 'however' before. Because a 'however' meant that something was about to mar his flawless record of annual reviews.

"A source which wishes to remain anonymous filed a complaint," the scientist continued.

Alpha Trion, the eldest member of the council, spoke up. "According to this anonymous source, some of your current cadets have been exhibiting some suspicious behavior. This behavior has been under our source's vigilant eye, and they believe you may have a Decepticon loyalist among them. They cannot pinpoint exactly which one it is, though."

Sentinel let out a air he'd been holding in his vents. Was that all? "Sirs, I can assure you that there's no way a Decepticon spy could be in my camp. I never take my eyes off of those cadets, so if there was one I'd know about it."

"You're completely sure about that," Perceptor once again spoke. He leveled a scrutinizing optic on the Minor.

"Positive. No spy would have slipped through my careful watch."

There was a small pause as Perceptor and Alpha Trion exchanged a look. The latter then spoke. "Very well, but we must warn you. Your overconfidence in your own ability to single out Decepticons, though according to our report you've never encountered one before, is a flaw we suggest you mend." He picked up a pen and signed off, approving the review, passing it to Perceptor who did the same. "You are dismissed."

Sentinel didn't move for a few moments, simply standing there with his slack-jawed. A _flaw_? Did they just state he had a _flaw_ while their review was in session, and thusly made it an officially recorded part of it? It was impossible, but true. His perfect record was ruined.

**::End Sentinel Prime::**

Sentinel rubbed his optics, standing up. One spy, Longarm Prime, no, Shockwave, that slime ball. That was all it took to mar a perfect record of perfect reviews. Even the Archa-7 incident hadn't done anything to break it, himself being cleared of all charges. If he had a choice he'd catch that fragging spy himself and make him pay. Not for what he did to Ultra Magnus, not for the fact that he was a Decepticon, but because he'd caused the word "flaw" to enter Sentinel's perfect lifecycle.

()()()()()()

Ratchet pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning back from his work and looking at the time. Almost midnight by Earth time. The sounds of the others outside playing had been distracting, and he'd debated going out and giving them another receptor-full for being so slaggin' loud. But in the end he decided that at least they were getting along instead of trying to kill each other, so he might as well let them be. The only one who wasn't out enjoying it was Prowl, who still sat in his room, meditating over… Primus knew what it was he actually thought he did wrong. Ratchet may have been old but he wasn't senile or stupid. He knew that whatever receptor-full Prowl had given Sentinel had been justified. Sentinel wasn't known for his subtlety when it came to subordinates and often said the wrong thing to them at the wrong time.

Prowl claimed that he was taking responsibility for his actions. Ratchet didn't think he was lying, as the ninjabot's mysterious thought process did seem to have the habit of laying cryptic inner meaning into the simplest statements. And Ratchet knew more about taking responsibility than anyone else, especially for saying something justifiably out of line.

**::Ratchet::**

Ratchet sat in the room where they had left Arcee, a broken shell of a charming young teacher without a mind to process what was happening to her. And it was all his fault. It was only a few megacycles after he'd brought Omega Supreme online and the giant robot had imprinted upon him. He had spent some time explaining to Omega what the difference between a 'master' and a 'friend' was. Now he sat staring at the blank, void faceplate of the femme who was supposed to have taught Omega what his purpose was and how it connected to the great cause he fought for. "Arcee…" he sighed. "What have we gotten ourselves into?"

Ratchet's audio receptors picked up vocals outside of the door. It was Ultra Magnus and the two scientists who had helped build Omega.

"…you sure you can't do anything…?" the conversation came in bits and pieces through the door.

"…processor…too far gone…" It was the mechanical voice of the head scientist. Ratchet remembered that he seemed to have little capacity in his processor for anything outside of his work. Or at least, that's what it seemed like to him.

Ratchet turned back to the processor-dead femme in front of him. He knew they were talking about Arcee. Being the cause of this, he decided he might as well give his input into the discussion. So he stood up and headed for the door. The closer he got, the better he could hear the conversation. And the next thing he heard caused his engine to sputter in shock.

"Perhaps," Perceptor said thoughtfully, "…if her processor is indeed so far gone, and cannot be recovered, there are some experiments I have been meaning to conduct. She would make an excellent… _volunteer _for them."

The door slid open and Ratchet snarled at him forcefully, causing the scientist to jump in surprise. He hadn't realized someone was inside there. "It's not enough to you that she can't hold a process on her own anymore? You're already planning to further lead her into the Pit with your… your _sick_ experiments?"

Perceptor looked taken aback for a moment, then highly offended. "I assure you there is nothing 'sick' about my experiments. And I would thank you to keep your anger in check."

"I'm already responsible for what's happened to her, I won't sit by and let her be _used_! Look where your last bright idea got her!"

The scientist narrowed his optics in annoyance. "As you just pointed out, it was _you_ who put her in that state, not us. I do not appreciate the tone in which you are speaking to me, as well." He turned to Ultra Magnus. "Perhaps you would like to better explain this one's place, Di… Magnus. I have some more important business to conduct than argue with stubborn medibots. I will await the response to my request." With a huff he turned on his heelstrut and marched away.

"Ah, slaggit, Perce!" Wheeljack, the other scientist, called after him. He turned to Ratchet. "Sorry about all of this. He may call you stubborn, but he's the walkin' definition of the word. I'll see if I can't get him to cool off." He then ran after his companion.

As soon as he was gone, Ultra Magnus turned to Ratchet. "Perhaps there are a few things you should know before you decide to tell Perceptor off again," he said sternly.

Ratchet looked a bit sheepish at first, but then stood his ground. "Sir, with all due respect, I couldn't just sit by and let him--"

"Actually, yes, you could," the Magnus cut him off. "Perceptor has a great amount of influence here in the Elite Guard. Partially because he is the best scientist we have. But also because he is a member of the Cybertronian council, a high ranking one at that." Ratchet shut his mouth quickly. He hadn't realized just how important the bot he'd been yelling at was. "However, I do understand your grounds in this issue. And whether you had intervened or not, I was not going to allow him to use her for any experiments. If he has any experiments that need a volunteer that can't object, he has plenty of offline bots to choose from."

Ratchet sighed in relief. "I'm… sorry I spoke out so rashly. I just…"

"Felt responsible, as you already mentioned. It's alright, Ratchet. I understand your concern, and I assure you that everything will be done to try and bring Arcee back. Even if she can't be, we will keep her here, safe and comfortable. This is not a time where we can concentrate on her state, not while we are fighting a war. But someday, when this war is over, we will not rest until all of those who gave up everything during this time are repaired to a state where they can take back their lives."

**::End Ratchet::**

Ratchet smiled to himself. Ultra Magnus had always been a fair, caring leader. Now, thanks to the spy, they were at risk of losing him and the war rested on Sentinel's shoulders. He groaned at this thought, leaning against his desk. If their lifecycles all depended on Sentinel… they were all doomed.

()()()()()()

Jetfire snuggled into his brother's chassis, practically trying to melt into it. It was a ritual they always performed before recharging. Wrestle, play, pleasure, and then fall into a comfortable recharge wrapped in each other's beings. Playing with the others had been fun, and this new phenomenon called 'snow' was certainly good for making mischief, if nothing else. But there was nothing to them more soothing than when their very beings intertwined and became one. Perceptor had spent time trying to decipher this phenomenon. They thought it was funny that he had such a hard time accepting that it wasn't something that could be explained through science.

Of course, they thought a lot of things about Perceptor were funny. They never met another bot who could stay up for solar cycles on end working on one experiment, only to wake up after having fallen into recharge at some undetermined moment in time and suddenly have no idea what he'd just spent all that time making.

**::The Twins::**

"What is it being?" Jetfire asked, looking over Perceptor's shoulder. Jetstorm was looking over the other one. Perceptor didn't mind. He seemed to have endless amounts of tolerance for the two young bots.

"I am… not completely sure," the scientist confessed. "I must have fallen into recharge while inventing again." He started picking up datapads and clicking through them. "I do not know why I expect to find answers in these, but it is certainly worth a try. After all, law of averages says that some-solar I will take notes while recharge-inventing."

The twins looked at each other. "I was not knowing you could do _anything_ in recharge," Jetfire said. His brother shrugged.

"Do not be silly, of course you can function in recharge. It simply shuts down your basic programming in order to preserve energon. You are still perfectly capable of accessing any other functions during that time. After all, during that time your cooling and heating units still work, as well as your hydraulics." The scientist frowned at the datapad, setting it down and tapping the workbench with his servos, staring at the… whatever it was.

"Perhaps if we are turning it on…?" Jetstorm reached around him for one of the buttons on the contraption.

"NO!" Perceptor quickly caught his hand, looking at him sternly. "Trust me, that is not a mistake you want to make. Wheeljack once turned on a machine before we knew what it was. It rocketed through a wall and damaged a medic and two Elite Guard soldiers. We will not be repeating that incident."

"Then how are we to be knowing what it is?" Jetstorm asked, pulling his arm back.

"Well, I suppose--" Perceptor was cut off as Wheeljack entered, scratching his head at a datapad.

"Hey, Perce, can you give me a hand?" the weapon scientist asked. "Oh, hey, boys."

"Hello, Wheeljack, sir!" the twins chorused.

"What do you need?" the Head of Science asked.

Wheeljack walked over and held the datapad out to him. "They asked me to rebuild the cannons in the defense grid, you know, cause the twins here blew them up," he jabbed a servo at the twins, who grinned back, "But for some reason they keep malfunctionin' on me. Can you take a look?"

Perceptor barely glanced at it before continuing to scrutinizing over his mysterious invention. "You misplaced one of the output generators," he simply answered.

There was a small pause as Wheeljack looked over the pad, a concentrated look plastering his faceplate. He finally answered, "No, I didn't."

Perceptor gave him an indignant look. "Yes, you did. The second output generator is too close to the field generator. It is causing a negation in the firing protocol."

Wheeljack scoffed. "It's _supposed_ to be close to the field generator. It's how the system can detect if someone tries to breach it."

"Yes, if it was a few inches to the left. I am telling you it is too close." Perceptor picked up the invention and placed it on a shelf before turning to the twins. "You two, do not touch _anything_. _Especially_ not what I just made. Understood?"

"Yes, Perceptor, sir!" the two nodded, saluting.

Perceptor nodded back in satisfaction before leaving with Wheeljack to see the defense cannons first hand, leaving the twins alone in the office. They weren't alone for more than three kliks before Jetstorm quickly grabbed the invention off of the shelf.

"I do not think you should be touching that!" Jetfire warned. "Perceptor sir told us to not be touching anything!"

"Come on, I know you are curious as well, brother!" Jetstorm grinned. "And besides, I am only looking. There's no harm in simply looking at it, is there?"

"I suppose not," Jetfire shrugged, looking over his shoulder. "What do you suppose it is?"

"It is looking like some kind of weapon. Perhaps he was making something to defeat the Decepticons with?"

"I am wishing we knew what it does."

The twins looked at each other, biting their lip components. They were thinking the same thing. One little button couldn't hurt, could it?

"Just one button," Jetfire resolved.

"Yes, just one. Then we are putting it back," his brother agreed.

()()()

Perceptor tapped his pede in annoyance and Wheeljack simply shook his head as Red Alert reattached Jetstorm's arm. "Halfway," Perceptor said in disbelief. "I only walked _halfway down the hall_ before you managed to blow up half of my office. You officially beat Wheeljack's record." The weapon scientist opened his mouth and he quickly added, "It does not count if I had not gotten out of the room yet." Wheeljack shut it again.

"What in the world did you two play with?" Red Alert said in exasperation, moving the arm up and down to make sure it was properly attached.

Before the twins could answer Perceptor spoke up again. "We may never know. Because they _blew it up_."

"We are being sorry," Jetfire said sheepishly. Red Alert had already finished with him. His damage wasn't as bad as Jetstorm's, since he wasn't the one holding the device or pushing the button when it exploded.

"Very sorry, yes," Jetstorm agreed. "We simply wanted to know what it did."

"And now we will never know. Because you _blew it up_."

"Okay, Perce! We get it! They blew up your toy you made in recharge! No reason to get hot and bothered about it, though," Wheeljack finally said sternly. "You'll make something else in recharge. You almost always do."

"What about the rest of my office?" Perceptor huffed. "All of my inventions, my experiments!"

"You say it like I haven't done it. Pit, I've blown up your office and the three surrounding all at once before. You got over it," the weapon scientist pointed out.

"Yes, well…" the council member trailed off, running out of steam, and more importantly arguments. He finally settled on, "I suppose I can let it go this time. Next time they won't be so lucky, though."

**::End Twins::**

"It was being an accident…" Jetfire muttered in his recharge. Jetstorm heard it but didn't react, recharging as well. In truth there wasn't another incident after that. They were inducted as Junior Officers of the Elite Guard and left in pursuit of Wasp shortly after it had happened. They marveled almost as much over Perceptor and Wheeljack's bond as the former marveled over their own. The two scientists seemed as close as the twins did. Red Alert said that they had been partners for as long as she could remember, though they were both much older than her. Though they occasionally bickered over trivial things, she had told the twins that it was simply something bots as close as them had to do every once in a while. After all, even the twins didn't agree about everything.

()()()()()

Prowl onlined an optic, taking in how absolutely silent the warehouse was. According to his internal clock it was past midnight, so it was no wonder why. He had lost himself in his meditation for hours, as he usually did. But something had startled him out of it. Something… inside of him. But what was it? His meditation had been so peaceful, soothing, allowing him to sort out his thoughts, his anger, his regret. He had been thinking on the values that his late Master Yoketron, rest his spark, had taught him.

**::Prowl::**

"There is no merit in losing yourself. After all, even when all else in the world is lost or taken, self is one thing no one can remove."

Prowl nodded slowly, mostly understanding. Yoketron's cryptic speech baffled him at times, but he was steadily learning to translate it in his head.

"Is there a question you'd like to ask me?" Yoketron asked.

Prowl blinked in surprise, but he figured he shouldn't have been so. After all, Yoketron seemed to always know when there was a problem with a lesson. "Yes, forgive me for not speaking up," Prowl bowed in respect.

"No need to apologize," his master waved it off. "You must remember that there is no shame in inquiring about that which you do not understand. After all, there is no harm in knowledge, but infinite suffering in ignorance."

"Of course," Prowl nodded. "It's just, well…" he thought of how to ask, Yoketron waiting patiently. "I'm not sure exactly what you meant by… 'self'. I mean, I know what it means as a word itself, but not in the way you used it."

"Yes, I understand that this is not something that is covered by your lessons as a sparkling. You see, 'self' is both everything that you are, and everything you are not. I do not mean your chassis or your processor, not even your spark. I mean that which makes up who you are deeper than even that."

Prowl opened his mouth then closed it, mouth quirking in confusion while he tried to understand.

Yoketron actually laughed. "It is quite alright. You are not the only student I have had that did not understand this lesson. In fact, I believe I have only ever had one who truly understood what his 'self' was." He stood and waved for Prowl to follow.

The young Autobot quickly stood up as well, hurrying after his teacher. When a lesson extended outside of the dojo he knew it was especially important. They didn't go far though, stopping off in the hall where Yoketron displayed his previous students. He walked over to one holographic display and stood by it, waiting for Prowl.

The young bot stopped in front of it. The hologram depicted another young bot, white and black, with a sleek chassis. It wasn't as thin or slight as Prowl's but it wasn't bulky like many other bots, especially during this war-torn era. "This," Yoketron finally spoke, "is one of the best students I trained here. His name is Jazz. If he can claim nothing else, he understands the concept of 'self' better than any other student I have had."

Prowl looked from his teacher back to the hologram. He still didn't understand completely. "Well, where is he? I haven't seen him around here. If he was such a great cyberninja, then why isn't he still refining his skills to become a master?"

Yoketron shook his head a bit. "As I said, he had a great sense of self. He knew that was not what he wanted. Instead of remaining here when he finished his training he moved onto the Autobot Academy to be a soldier. He does not want to be a master of the cyberninja arts and spend the rest of his lifecycle in this dojo. He wishes to help defeat the Decepticons and bring the same peace to this universe that he found here in my training. That is the legacy he wishes to leave."

Prowl looked at Yoketron in wonder a moment before his optics wandered back to the hologram. He chose not to become a master even though he clearly was gifted in the cyber-martial arts? "But why?" he felt inclined to ask.

Yoketron reached out and put a hand on Prowl's shoulder. "Because he knew that the lifecycle I have led is not the one he wished for. Mastering and teaching Circuit-Su and Metallikato makes me happy because it is what I chose to do. It was my wish. His wish is to bring peace. What will you do with your lifecycle?" he gestured to the hologram, smiling warmly. "Prowl, what is your wish?"

Prowl offlined his optics. "I wish…"

**::End Prowl::**

Prowl onlined his optics again, looking at the shelf he had placed the samurai mods on. Yoketron's helmet sat in the middle, faceless and blank but still staring accusingly him. He now knew what had interrupted his peaceful meditation. "I know, I'm sorry, master," Prowl sighed, walking to his berth and laying on it. "I failed the protoforms, I failed you…" he offlined his optics again as he tried to find recharge. "I even failed my own wish…"

()()()()()

A series of hums penetrated the peace of the Steelhaven's sitting room. It was a simple room that had a couple of sofas and a few cases of high-grade. Sentinel had suggested it, unsurprisingly a short time after the twins joined his crew. After all, the Prime didn't really know how to handle young bots, let alone twins. After a long day of dealing with the two he usually needed a buzz.

Tonight, though, Jazz was the one who needed the stimulation. His processor ached from trying to deal with Prowl and his refusal to accept help. That look the other ninjabot had given him was still plastered into his optics. As icy cold as the snowstorm that was quickly covering Detroit in a few thick layers of powdery crystals. "And just as slaggin' pretty…" Jazz sang out, not breaking his pattern of rhythm, energon cube hanging loosely in his hand over the side of the sofa, himself sprawled across it. He didn't remember the last time he'd drank this much. Probably during his Autobot Academy training days. That was after the war. He hadn't gotten a chance to actually fight, though he'd desperately wanted to. Well, on the bright side he was getting plenty of battle in now.

He grinned dryly, the high-grade starting to take it's effect, allowing him to better appreciate a more bitter humor. _'But am I fighting the Decepticons more, or my own teammates?'_ Despite his biting thoughts and the buzz running through his system, the humming didn't stop. He used it to hold himself down like an anchor. Music was his escape. It always had been. Not that Cybertron was known much for its amazing variety of music. Most of it didn't have that certain something that breathes life into a spark and makes it feel online. No real beat, no rhythm, just a dull pulse of something that took the concept too literally and simply turned to tedious, uninteresting repetition.

No one seemed to appreciate music quite like Jazz did back home. On Earth that could be considered a career, and Jazz would have given anything to be able to make a living with the natural gift he had for rhythm. But on Cybertron it simply wasn't possible. For some reason, mechs just didn't seem to appreciate the beauty of a well executed downbeat. It was actually why Jazz had gone into Cyberninja training. He never would have thought of becoming a student of the martial arts if it wasn't for his fascination of music.

**::Jazz::**

CLICK CLANG BANG CLICK

Jazz tapped his pede with every sound, leaning against the fence outside of the Energon refinery. Cybertronians passed by him without notice, without even pausing to discover the wonderful phenomenon he had immersed himself in. He had asked one of the older mechs in Iacon City what music was, having been told that was what it was called. The mech proceeded to hum some farce of what Jazz heard around him, almost horrifying the young black and white bot. The sound that left the lip components of the elder mech was so flat, so lifeless. Jazz had tried to show that mech what he meant, bringing him to the refinery. The mech told him off for wasting his time and told him that his lifecycle was wasting away, he had to find a function actually productive to the Autobot cause. The problem was that Jazz just couldn't figure out anything else he was _good_ at.

But honestly, that was okay with him, because all Jazz wanted to do was stand there at the fence and listen to the rhythm of the city. All he could wonder was how he was the only one who could hear it. It was plain as the steel that caused it, enveloped him like the air flowing through his vents. He tapped the fence with his servos to the beat he heard, adding his own varying audio pitches to find a more unique harmony. It was when he started humming as such that bots started to give him strange looks. Could none of them hear the wonderful sound it was creating?

"Hey, you! What did I tell you?!" a booming vocalization interrupted the flow of beats and Jazz jumped, looking at the other mech approaching fast on the other side of the fence. It was Hammer Drive, the head bot at the refinery. And he didn't look too happy to see Jazz. As usual. "I can't have you hangin' off my fence and distractin' my workers with your weird sounds, now get out of here! This is a refinery, not an Energon Park!"

Jazz didn't need to hear anymore. He'd been caught by Hammer Drive before. He had to wear a visor to show for it, thanks to the optic damage he received from him. This time he transformed and took off down the street, mechs and femmes diving out of the way to avoid getting hit and shaking clenched servos after him. But Jazz didn't listen to their curses and warnings. He was getting tired of this, of the dull, lifeless lifecycle he was being forced to lead. He didn't want to continue like this, but he didn't want to become another mech with some generic function, blending into the rest of the world. He'd thought of joining the Autobot Academy, becoming a warrior and helping fight the Decepticons in the war. But… no. He wasn't made of the right stuff for that.

After driving aimlessly for a while, just trying to find somewhere he could stop and think without someone interrupting him, he skidded to a halt. This part of Cybertron… he'd never seen it before. It was peaceful, not quiet but not as loud as Iacon City. So he turned back to his robot mode and stood there, just listening. The sound of workers on Energon farms nearby, the gentle clanking of metal on metal as mechs moved from task to task, the gentle, tinny hum of machinery at work. It was a huge contrast to the loud, rambunctious beat of the city. Instead, it surrounded him with a soothing melody.

It was…nice. Jazz felt suddenly at peace, no one nagging him to choose a function, or chasing him away from the music only he could identify, nor were there the scrutinizing stares of 'normal' bots. Simply… peace. So he just stood, optics shuttered, absorbing the gentle sounds of a simpler sector of Cybertron.

Click, Whirr, Clang, Sift, Click, Whirr…

"Hyaah!"

He was startled out of the enveloping melody by a sudden outcry. What in the name of Primus…?

"Hyooh! Hyaah!"

Jazz followed the odd sound. It was steady. Rhythmic. It was even made by vocal processors, a feat the black and white mech had never heard other than from himself. Did someone else on this planet understand it too?

He passed through a large gate into a strange looking building, transfixed on the sound that became clearer. There was more than just the cries, they were perfectly synced with the clanging of metal and whoosh of something cutting through the air. It wasn't long before he located it, and the sounds were joined by the sharp intake of air through his vents. He'd heard of them, knew a few joined the Elite Guard - Pit, he'd heard even the Decepticons had a couple of them - but he'd never thought he'd see one himself.

Cyberninjas.

There were four of them, moving in perfect sync with each other, servos expertly slicing the air as if an enemy stood in the space where they swung. At the front, watching them diligently, was an older mech in black, white, and gold. Jazz was sure he'd never seen a more dignified figure in his lifecycle. Probably never would again, in fact. But his focus soon turned back to the students, still moving perfectly. Or, at least he thought.

"Nightbird!" the elder snapped. A black and purple femme stopped immediately, snapping to attention, straight and tall. The others didn't even miss a beat. "Do not force your movements! They must flow like a comet! Smooth, unyielding!" He crouched into a fighting stance and kicked out, moving swiftly into a punch without even pausing between.

Nightbird bowed respectively. "Forgive me, Master Yoketron! I shall try harder!" She then crouched as he had before, retaking her place in the sync of the deadly dance they performed.

Yoketron once again straightened up, Jazz staring at him in awe. He wasn't just dignified, he was empowered. Every facet of the cyberninja's being radiated a confidence and nobility that felt foreign to the younger mech. His students worked and strove to mirror it with a dedication that was lost to him. He had no place in this amazing establishment. So he turned and started to leave the master and his students to their training.

"Will you not even give your name?"

Jazz jumped as Yoketron spoke, turning quickly. The elder mech's head was turned towards him. He hadn't even known that the cyberninja master knew he was there. "I-it's not important. Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt your lesson. I'm… you know… just goin'."

"No, it is quite alright," Yoketron gestured to the space next to him. Jazz looked unsure for a moment, but then decided there would be no harm in staying if the master didn't mind it. "I am Master Yoketron."

"Yeah, I heard the femme… er… Nightbird call you that. I'm Jazz," the younger mech said a bit awkwardly. What was he doing? He didn't have a right to invade the teacher's time.

"Well, Jazz, what brings you to my dojo?"

Jazz watched the students continue their exercise. "I just, well… it's stupid." Even he was starting to think it. He had hoped the sound he heard was someone else who heard the music this world naturally made, but again it was nothing but bots working hard without even realizing what they were creating.

"I believe I should be the judge of that," Yoketron replied, looking at him. Jazz just looked away, reluctant. After a moment, the cyberninja master clapped his servos and the students stopped, straightening in respect. "We will end our lesson early today! You are dismissed!" he announced. The students bowed and he returned it before they scattered, turning from a group of trainee-death-machines back into normal young bots. They waited until they were all out of the room before Yoketron motioned for Jazz to follow. Before long they were sitting on cushions at a low table, cups of Mild-Grade Energon (the weakest of all) before them. "Now, may I ask that you answer my question this time?"

Jazz sighed, drinking a bit of energon. He obviously wasn't going to get out of this. "Well, it was… I was followin' the rhythm. I mean, as I said this sounds dumb, but you cats were laying down some crazy beats."

"Oh?" Yoketron inquired. It didn't sound mocking, but genuinely interested. "You were attracted by the rhythm of my students' training?"

"Yeah, basically," Jazz folded his arms on the table, leaning forward. "It's just that wherever I go, no matter what, I just seem _drawn_ to rhythm. Like it's one big magnet, you dig? But it's like no one else can hear it." He shook his head, smiling wryly. "What am I talkin' about? No offense, but there's not much chance you know what I'm layin' down."

Yoketron, for the first time, smiled. "Oh, I am not so sure about that. I seem to 'dig' what you are 'laying down' quite well. You simply have not seemed to notice."

Jazz scrunched his faceplate in confusion before looking down. While talking about rhythm, his servos had involuntarily started tapping a quick beat. But it was intermingled with something else. His gaze wandered to Yoketron's servos, which were keeping a slow but perfectly meshed beat with his. They weren't just tapping out a lifeless pattern that the ninjabot found by chance. They were making music.

"You're…! How did you…?" Jazz couldn't seem to make a coherent sentence, but didn't feel obliged to stop tapping.

Yoketron continued as well. "Music and the martial arts have much in common, Jazz. Like music, Metallikato and Circuit-Su must come naturally, not be forced. And like Metallikato, music cannot be done by just anybot. It takes a very special mech to appreciate the beauty of both." He shook his head sadly. "Sadly, the list of such bots continues to dwindle. There was a time I would teach a dozen students at once. However, this war demands soldiers, not ninjas."

Jazz understood what he was insinuating. "No, no, I'm sorry, Master Yoketron, but I can't. I mean, I'm not exactly built for this kinda scene, dig? I'm not a warrior."

"Oh? And what are you?" the master asked slyly.

The younger mech opened his mouth, then shut it. It was as if the wise old mech could see into his spark. "I… don't know," he admitted. They still didn't stop the rhythm they made. It was oddly comforting.

"Then how do you know you are no warrior?"

Jazz had to think about it again. He really hadn't found anything else worthwhile to do with his function. And he was already there, and being offered the chance of a lifecycle. And the dignified mech sitting before him was right, this was probably the closest thing to making music for his function that he was going to get to do. "Alright. I'll try it," he finally conceded.

"Very good, your first lesson will start tomorrow. We will start with the basics. But for now, shall we, as I believe you said, 'lay down a crazy beat'?"

Jazz couldn't help but laugh hearing it from the noble Yoketron. But still, he brought up his other arm and together they made music with the table and it's contents.

**::End Jazz::**

The energon cube clattered to the ground as Jazz turned over in his recharge. His mind felt more at peace with the thoughts of Master Yoketron. He had nothing but good memories of the wise, old ninjabot. Prowl reminded him a lot of the mech who had given him a purpose in life. They were both proud and noble, stubborn in their own ways, but still appreciated the simple things, like music. It was one of the things they connected about. Both of the younger cyberninjas appreciated the natural rhythm of nature and could sit listening to it for megacycles. The thought made him smile in his recharge.

()()()()()

Optimus Prime quietly opened the door to Prowl's room just before midnight, making sure not to make too much noise. He just wanted to make sure he was okay. The ninjabot still sat on the cold floor, meditating peacefully. Optimus smiled and closed the door again. It was some deep impulse from being the leader that made him need to keep an eye on his men. Unlike Sentinel, who seemed to believe that soldiers were just there to boss around, the red and blue Prime understood that a team was more than that. They were family. A dysfunctional family, but family none-the-less.

Optimus knew that even more since coming to this planet. Humans seemed to both understand and misinterpret the term 'family' better than anyone. They understood the importance of togetherness and keeping their roots close, loving and caring for those who are their own flesh and blood. But they also didn't seem to understand that everyone was a part of that family, no matter how different they were. Not that Cybertronians weren't guilty of the same thing. Decepticons, or rather Destrons at the time, had once been a part of Cybertron as well, friends and allies. But that was a long time ago, long before Optimus was even sparked. Since he didn't know them as such, he could never bring himself to think of them as anything but cold-blooded enemies. And that wasn't for a lack of trying.

He slid the door to Bumblebee's room open, peeking in. The youngest member of their team was in recharge. He couldn't blame him. It'd been such a long day, even if the excitement hadn't happened until evening. "Longarm… no… why…" the young mech muttered in his recharge. Optimus frowned, then shook his head. He knew Bumblebee and Longarm had been friends, and the younger mech had put his trust in the traitor. Optimus found it nothing short of a miracle that the yellow mech still trusted _anyone_ after Shockwave had revealed himself.

Optimus sighed and moved on, sliding the door closed once more. He paused outside of Bulkhead's room. With the knowledge that four powerful Decepticons were once again loose in Detroit he wished he could know for sure that Bulkhead and Sari were okay. He was sure the villains couldn't make a move in this increasing storm, but he also couldn't get a hold of his two snowed-in teammates at Sumdak Tower to make sure.

He finally arrived at Ratchet's office, knocking on the door. He knew the old bot would still be up. "Come in," came the rough grunt.

"Hey, I was just checking on everyone," Optimus said, walking in. "Do you need anything before I head to recharge?"

"Nah, I'm fine," Ratchet didn't even look up from his work. "I'll pro'bly just get a few more cycles of this in, then hit the berth, too."

"Alright, but try not to stay up too late."

"I'll try not, _mom_."

Optimus chuckled and once again left. He hadn't planned on staying long, as the old bot was already agitated at the interruptions he kept having through the day. So he headed back to his own room, thinking on the day and events, especially the odd occurrence of Prowl's punishment. No one had expected it, as Sentinel was usually the easy one to blame for… well… everything. In their defense, that was only because most everything he was blamed for really _was_ his fault. But Prowl… He'd always been considered strange, ever since they took him onto the crew, but this took the energon cake.

**::Optimus Prime::**

"Boss bot! He's doing it again!"

"Move yer hippy aft, ninjabot!"

"Come on, Prowl, we've got work to do!"

Optimus groaned, walking over. "What is it this time?" he asked, looking at the three annoyed faces.

"Prowl won't let us do our job is what it is!" Bumblebee complained, pointing at the ninjabot. The latter had placed himself firmly between them and the mound of rubble they had to clear off of the asteroid, looking determined to not move.

"This is gettin' ridiculous," Ratchet muttered. "We agreed to let him tag along if he _helped_, not if he got in the way."

The Prime sighed, pinching the bridge of his faceplate. This entire situation was giving him a processorache. "Have you tried asking him _why_ he won't move?"

"No," Bulkhead admitted.

"He'll just give us one of those dumb responses he always does! Like the cosmic energies are perfectly aligned there or some slag like that!" Bumblebee huffed, crossing his arms and glowering at the still unmoving cyberninja. The two hadn't gotten along very well since solar cycle one. They were simply too different.

"Fine, I'll ask him," Optimus settled, moving over to Prowl. The black and gold mech didn't even budge. "Prowl, you realize we have a job to do here, right?"

"Yes."

Well, it was a start. "And you realize you're standing in the way, right?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to tell me _why_ you're standing in the way, if you're aware it's impeding our ability to do our job?"

"Because you'll destroy life."

Optimus faltered. That wasn't quite what he was expecting. "What do you mean?"

"Look," Prowl stepped aside and gestured to the rubble. There was something… moving in there. Optimus couldn't tell what it was and leaned in.

"Gah!" he suddenly stumbled back as that something jumped out at him. It looked like a three-legged creature made completely of green goo. It had no visible eyes or features but they could still somehow tell that it was looking at them. It then dashed back into its hiding place, away from the large mechanical beings staring at it.

"Eww! What was that?" Bumblebee asked.

"It was an organic life form," Prowl replied. "And you were going to destroy its home."

"Well, what's it doing living in a pile of asteroid rubble?" Bulkhead asked this time, bending down next to the rubble to try and see it again.

Prowl walked over to a stone that was separated from the pile and picked it up. "From what I've determined, I believe the answer is this." He gently squeezed the rock and it crumbled in his servos as if it were made of ancient, rusted metal. "It seems as if it feeds off of the nutrients in the asteroid's components. It has likely not been here long as, well… we're still standing on the asteroid, thus it's not been made brittle."

Ratchet looked thoughtful. "You know, yer pretty perceptive, kid. For a hippy."

Prowl smiled. "I'll take that as a compliment." He glanced over as Bulkhead jumped, moving away from the pile. "Is it showing itself again?"

"I'll say!" Bulkhead panted. "It jumped out, then back in again. I think its scared of us."

"Well, I would be wary too if five giant mechanical beings were invading my home," Prowl answered, moving over. He crouched next to the pile, holding a servo out to it. He simply sat there, unmoving.

"What in the pit is he…?"

"Shh!" Prowl cut Bumblebee off as the organic mass of goo emerged, leaning close to the ninjabot's servos. It seemed to sniff them before jumping on Prowl's arm and slithering its way around his chassis before stopping on his hand again. Prowl chuckled. "See now? You're a friendly little thing, aren't you?" It chirped at him in response.

"Eeeeeww, he touched it!" Bumblebee made a face.

"I have to agree with Bumblebee," Optimus announced. "I don't know if that's such a good idea. We don't even know what it is. It could be hostile."

"Don't be ridiculous, I feel no negative energies from it," Prowl corrected, letting it slither around him. Though when it was on the ground it seemed to pounce around on three legs, when it was on a surface that wasn't flat or was too smooth to walk on, like Prowl's chassis, it seemed to simply melt into a stream of liquid green ooze when it moved.

"Great, it's out of the pile, can we get back to work now?" Bulkhead asked.

Prowl looked at him a moment then back at the rock pile. After a moment he nodded. "I sense nothing else. You may go ahead." He then moved away, carrying the chirping creature. "We'll see if we can't find a better place for this little guy to call home."

()()()

Three megacycles later, the rubble was finally cleared and the spacebridge was secure. All they needed was to go over it and try and bring it back online. They weren't holding up hope with the condition it was in. Optimus sat inside of their ship, watching Prowl. They had established a rule that he couldn't bring the organic creature inside without knowing what it was. So Prowl stood outside, making quick movements to try and see how well the creature could stay with him. It actually… kind of looked like he was dancing. The green organic blob made perfect sync with him, seeming to predict every time another part of him was about to move and quickly slithering to another end of the chassis.

"I have to find out what that is," Optimus said aloud.

"Forget it," Bumblebee shrugged from his seat at the other end of the cockpit. Ratchet was in his lab putting pieces of the brittle, nutrient-deprived rocks under a microscope to find out what the creature was doing to them. Bulkhead was at the spacebridge trying to figure a way to repair it without making it worst. The task was proving almost impossible.

"Maybe I can call someone. No one in the Science Division, though they would be the most likely to know. I'm not sure I want Ultra Magnus to know that I picked up Prowl yet, and he works too close to them. Hmm, someone who might know something about strange alien life…" Optimus snapped his servos. "I know who to call!"

He tapped up a frequency, waiting for the connection to be established. After a moment a red and orange bot appeared on the screen, looking bored. "This is Rodimus Prime, what do you--" he suddenly perked up, noticing who he was talking to. "Optimus! Long time, no see! How's bridge duty?"

"Don't ask," Optimus muttered. "Actually, I didn't call for idle chat, though I wish I could just talk. I wanted to ask you something."

"Anything," Rodimus winked. "I'm all yours, hot stuff."

Bumblebee nearly snorted the oil he was drinking up his nasal circuits.

Optimus nearly cut connection right there. "This isn't the time for your unique sense of humor, Rodimus. I need you to promise me that what I'm about to ask you about won't reach Ultra Magnus or the council's audio receptors."

"Of course, tall, strong, and handsome," Rodimus purred. "You know I'd do anything for you."

Bumblebee jumped out of his chair and stumbled out of the room, trying not to laugh. He didn't succeed in the last part, letting out a loud guffaw before he could even reach the door. But still, he held in most of it until he was safely in the hall.

The red and blue Prime glowered up at his companion on the screen, who just smiled innocently. "You know, I could just cut connection."

"No need," Rodimus held up his servos. "I did what I was hoping. I got the squirt out of the room. Now, in all seriousness, what is it you need, Optimus?"

Seeing that the conversation was once again returned to civility, Optimus continued asking what he initially intended. "You've been around the galaxies a few times, right Rodimus?"

"Yes, indeed. According to my function I have to investigate wherever rumors of a Decepticon uprising may happen. Even if the rumors are either completely untrue or horribly exaggerated."

"Good, then you've seen a lot of odd creatures and alien life, right?"

"Enough of it, anyway. Sometimes more than I wish to admit. Why?"

"Could you tell me if you've ever seen anything like this?" Optimus sent the transmission of Prowl playing with the odd green organic creature.

Rodimus squinted at it a moment, trying to keep up with its quick movements. As soon as it paused and he could see it, though, his optics widened. He stood up quickly at his monitor. "Optimus, get that thing away from him _now_!"

Optimus stood up as well in surprise. "What is it, Rodimus?"

"We don't know what it's called, or if it even has a name for it's species. But we have seen that thing, or rather one of it's kind, before! Specifically, we saw one of those things jump into one of my soldier's chassis and eat away at his components until they fell apart like dust! What it's doing now, it did that to him too! It's looking for the best way to suck him dry!"

Optimus didn't need to hear anymore. Without even closing the transmission he hurried outside. Bumblebee, having regained his senses, watched him run by and followed quickly.

On the asteroid, Prowl and the creature continued their innocent dance. "Prowl!" Optimus called, running up. "Get away from it! It's dangerous!"

Prowl stopped and turned, looking at him in confusion. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"I called a friend, he said that thing doesn't just eat at the nutrients in asteroids like this, it feeds off of the components of bots too!"

"What--?" Before Prowl could finish, or ever react, the creature suddenly hissed, rearing back from it's perch on his shoulder and diving into his chassis from a small opening in his chest plating. "Gaahh!!" He stumbled backwards, stunned, falling on his aft.

"Prowl!" Optimus yelled, stopping in front of him. He wasn't sure what to do. He hadn't stopped to ask Rodimus what to do in case it _did_ attack one of his crewmates.

"So much for 'not sensing any negative energies'!" Bumblebee couldn't help but put out there.

He shut his mouth, though, as Prowl let out a scream, arching his back. His chassis started to pale as the creature started to drain it of whatever it could find - energon, lubricant, the nutrients in the metals he was made of themselves. He instinctually grabbed his chestplate, digging the servos of his other hand into the asteroid's surface. He'd been wrong about that too, it had become brittle, but only the outer surface. The creature hadn't started to drain the inside yet, not finding a way in. Prowl wasn't so lucky.

"What's going on?" Bulkhead asked, running up as he heard the screaming.

"That little green blob is trying to suck the ninjabot dry!" Bumblebee said quickly. "We don't know what to do!"

"Zap him!" Optimus suddenly said.

"What?!"

"You only have work-grade stingers, right? They shouldn't do much harm to Prowl, but they could 'discourage' his little friend from staying!"

Bumblebee still looked a bit unsure, but aimed and fired, yelling, "Sorry about this, Prowl!"

The electricity coursed and surged through the black and gold mech, causing him to scream louder. But the creature started squealing too, and after a few moments it jumped out of him and hissed before dashing off again. Without the creature inside of him Bumblebee stopped and Prowl finally collapsed back onto the ground, not moving.

"Get Ratchet!" Optimus ordered the small yellow mech. Bumblebee just nodded numbly and ran off. "Bulkhead, did you see which way it was going?"

"Nah, it ran off too fast," Bulkhead scratched his head. "Sorry, boss." He then joined Optimus, who kneeled next to the mech who had fallen into stasis lock from the sudden shock - no pun intended - of it all. "Is he…?"

"Online, but I don't know how much longer. I don't know what that thing got away with, but Ratchet can hopefully fix it."

()()()

Optimus sat in the control room, head in his servos, breathing slowly. Prowl was going to be okay. He'd lost a lot of fluid, and some of his chassis had lost a bit of luster, but other than that he was fine.

"Are you going to be okay?" Rodimus asked. He'd been on the line the entire time, watching from the view screen Optimus had left on.

The red and blue Prime nodded slowly. When he came out here he wanted action, he'd admit it. But that wasn't what he'd had in mind. He almost lost a teammate.

"You did great, Optimus," the other Prime assured him. "I never thought to zap my soldier when he was being dusted by that thing. I'd get off of that asteroid as soon as possible, though."

"We are. We're already off and leaving."

There was a silence as Rodimus considered his next question. He didn't feel it would be right to leave communication while his friend was still like this. "How's the little yellow one doing?"

"Bumblebee?" Optimus looked up. "A little shaken up, but he'll be fine. Ratchet assured him that his stingers didn't do any real damage, just jolted Prowl's systems."

"That's good. Are you going to be alright?" he asked again.

"For the fifth time, yes. I'll be fine." Optimus actually smiled this time. "I should probably go check on Prowl again. Make sure he's okay."

"Sure, no problem," Rodimus nodded. He then looked over Optimus's shoulder as Bumblebee walked in again. He grinned.

"Rodimus, don't--"

Too late. "I'll miss you everyday, honey-bot," Rodimus said in a sugary, almost feministic voice. He then blew a kiss, cutting the transmission before Optimus could reply.

Bumblebee looked like he was going to burst from held in laughter.

"It's not what it sounds like, he's just teasing!" Optimus insisted.

"Whatever you say, _honey-bot_," Bumblebee sugared up his voice just for that, running back out before Optimus could get up and grab him.

**::End Optimus Prime::**

Optimus smiled, laying back on the berth. Luckily Prowl had learned his lesson from that experience. He was more cautious around strange organics he couldn't identify. Optimus didn't blame him, they were all nervous when they'd brought him in, drained and pale, to Ratchet's office.

The thing that clung in his mind at that moment, though, was Rodimus Prime. He hadn't talked to him since that solar cycle. Optimus wondered if he was doing alright. He had to be working overtime now that Decepticon activity had started again. Maybe Optimus would see if he could get a hold of him after the storm, just for a chat. He knew Sentinel would want to chat with their old academy buddy as well, even if Rodimus didn't want to speak to him. Back in those days, while Rodimus, then Hot Rod, was a couple hundred stellar cycles ahead of them in the Academy, it was only because of his natural abilities as a soldier. He still spent a lot of time around Optimus, Sentinel, and Elita-1 at the time until he graduated to become Rodimus Minor.

The red and blue Prime cringed. Promotions only reminded him of the temporary Sentinel Magnus. Rodimus was probably getting sick of being ordered around by the temporary Magnus already, though he would never vocalize it. While he liked to tease those close to him he always respected his superiors - no matter who they were.

Optimus's optics offlined and he yawned, stretching his circuits and joints. He then rested back for a peaceful recharge. They had promised to show the twins how to decorate for Christmas. It would be odd without Sari, but luckily Bumblebee had paid attention to her the last stellar cycle, along with every Christmas special known to humanity, and knew what he was doing. Optimus supposed the little yellow bot had to be an expert at _something_ besides being the fastest thing on Earth. At any rate, tomorrow was going to be eventful. Optimus somehow knew it.


	6. Mistletoe

**Disclaimer:** Do I even have to _say_ it again? I _still_ don't own anything!

**Contest Winner:** Flarey Phoenix won the contest by correctly guessing the G1 exclusive cameo last chapter: Nightbird, who was created in G1 by Japanese scientists. Her prize was the opportunity to tell me what she wanted to happen in the next chapter. Her response: "Something cuuuteee (lol, I love saying that) between Jazz and Prowl, with mistletoe". So here's her prize, Chapter 6: Mistletoe. CONGRATULATIONS!

**Note:** Holy Primus, an actual update that isn't a month later? How is that possible?! Actually, it's because I've started working where I used to again, and so I'm able to write at work again. It really helps me to be able to get this stuff done, lol. So, for once, thank my work for helping me write, not from keeping me from it! 8D

**Note 2:** I'll put this note on the most recent chapter (8) as well, but I thought it would fit here quite well. I recently got my hands on the AllSpark Almanac and was reviewing the layout of the warehouse the Earthbound Autobots live in. Turns out, I butchered the entire layout in this and future chapters. Yeah… sorry about that. But it's too extensive of damage to fix without having to rewrite whole chapters. So for the sake of my sanity (I'm already modifying all the chapters for canon units of time), we're going to say my layout is the right one for this fanfic (and Control, since it's the sequel to this). K? Thanks!

**Chapter Warnings: Mild Jetwincest, and FINALLY actual Jazz/Prowl!**

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**PrancingTiger86** - Haha, I know it was a long chapter, and I appreciate your wish, but unlike you, I was _begging _to be finished with it. It was just soooo long! I was relieved to finish it, lol.**  
Evil E. Evil** - Hmm, that's a good idea. It won't fit in here, but perhaps if I get a chance I'll look into making a separate fanfic for Shockwaves POV of that night. Thanks for the idea!**  
Chibimax** - Somebody got it! --roflmao-- I've been obsessing over Ghostbusters for the last week and a half, and had to get a joke in there somewhere. I'm glad someone spotted the reference. x3**  
Jessangel249 **- For guessing in the contest, she does get special mention. Though her guess of "Wheeljack" was incorrect (a character by that name appeared in Armada, and our Wheeljack does make appearances in Animated), she does get the booby prize (lol, booby) of being able to semi-dictate something she wanted to happen. She wanted Jettwin cuteness, which I got a _little_ bit in here, but I'll cover better in the next chapter.**  
Stormx** - I love that people had a good sense of humor for my image of Rodimus. Unfortunately, he won't get much appearance in this fanfic since it's about the Autobots stuck on Earth, but rest assured that in the sequel fanfic "Control" you'll see a lot more of him. And yes, Perceptor and Wheeljack are like a married couple, lol. Ivee is something of a female version of Ratchet, only unlike him she long since stopped caring about her job, lol. And I'm getting right on that Jettwin/Lambo Twin fanfic, I've already started it. I can guarantee you, it will be done like _no one_ has ever done it before x3**  
Shirox**, **Happyfish**, **sweetyamiyugigirl**, **flamingmarsh**, **DreamFeathers**, and** Shizuka Taiyou** - Thank you so much for your read and reviews! I hope you keep reading, and I always love to see more reviews!

**Chapter 6  
Mistletoe**

"What is this being?"

"It's called tinsel. It's supposed to go on the Christmas tree," Bumblebee replied. The twins seemed to need to know what everything was. Bumblebee was all too happy to be the expert on the approaching holiday, though. All of the decorations were ones left over from last year, Sari having given them to the Autobots as part of her Christmas present.

"Unfortunately, we do not have a Christmas tree this year," Prowl pointed out. The events from the previous night seemed mysteriously forgotten, though no one was complaining. "The storm hasn't given us an opportunity to find one."

"Yeah, too bad. The tree last year was wonderful after it was decorated," Optimus sighed.

"We'll just have to make do," Bumblebee shrugged. He pulled out a tiny branch decorated with ribbon and glitter. "Hey, look! It's the mistletoe! I didn't know Sari left this!"

"Missile-what?" Jetstorm asked. He was hovering at the wall, putting up a wreath as the yellow bug had dictated.

"Not _missile_," he huffed. "_Mistle_toe! Sari said if you stand under it then someone has to kiss you."

"Why?" Jetfire asked. He was kneeling at the tiny box, taking trinkets and decorations out to look at. There were also Autobot-sized decorations they had made to match the human-sized ones. The wreath Jetstorm was making sure was straight had been made by Prowl using branches he'd found last Christmas.

"I dunno," Bumblebee admitted, shrugging.

"It's tradition," Optimus smiled. "Like High-Grade shots during the Great Festival." The Great Festival was the only Cybertron-wide celebration. Even Decepticons honored it, Megatron himself refusing to let his warriors attack on that solar cycle. Everything shut down for that solar to honor the holiday. No one was sure where the tradition of High-Grade shots started, or what it even had to do with the celebration, but no one complained either. He looked at the time on the wall. "Shoot, I promised Ratchet I'd help him in his office. You guys will have to finish without me." He put down the string of lights he was untangling and hurried out.

Jetstorm grinned and landed next to Bumblebee, swiping the mistletoe from him. He then moved next to his brother, holding it over himself. "Hey, brother. I am being under mistletoe."

Jetfire leaned back and glanced at him before returning the grin. "Well, then…" he said, standing up. "You are needing a kiss, yes?" He leaned in and gently pushed his lip components against his brother's. When he pulled back Jetstorm smiled and wrapped an arm around his waist, placing their foreheads together.

"Here," he said, tossing the mistletoe back in the box. "I do not think we are needing it."

Bumblebee rolled his optics, turning and striding away. "You bots drive me crazy…" he muttered. "We're never going to get this done."

Prowl chuckled, but then looked at the barren corner of the main room where the tree had been the last year. He'd enjoyed having such nature inside his home, still green and full of life. It even brought a smile to Bumblebee and Sari to have it there, being able to cover it with colorful lights and glass ornaments. This year it was impossible. There was zero visibility in the blinding snowstorm that now raged outside. The only reason Sentinel, Jazz, and the twins were able to get to the warehouse from their ship was because Jetfire was able to melt a path to walk, the twins unable to fly in the weather. The path had quickly been filled back in by the onslaught, though. According to the news, the entirety of Detroit and all surrounding cities and areas seemed to be shut down for this phenomenon.

Bumblebee was about to pass him by when he noticed the look. An idea suddenly came to mind. He ran back to the twins, who were still entwined in each other. "Hey, you two, no time for corny story-pad romance. I have an idea!" He ignored the indignant looks they gave him and lowered his voice, speaking quickly.

After a moment, the twins perked up, smiling broadly. "You think it will be working?" Jetfire asked.

"Shhh!" Bumblebee warned, looking at Prowl. He then turned back to them. "Of course I'm sure. Come on!" He picked up a couple of the boxes, nodding toward the door.

The three ran out of the room quickly, conspicuously trying to avoid Prowl's scrutinizing gaze.

"Whoa, watch it, cats!" Jazz pushed himself against the door frame before they could run into him on their way out. "What's the hurry?"

"Nothing!" all three said at once, hurrying down the hall.

Jazz scratched his head, but then shrugged. "What was that about?" he asked Prowl.

"I'm not sure, but they're up to something," the black and gold ninjabot muttered.

"Hmm…" Jazz hummed thoughtfully. He then glanced back at his companion. "Hey, no samurai gear?"

Prowl looked down at himself. He indeed was without his samurai mods. "Well, seeing as we're stuck here, I didn't see a need to wear them. Despite what it may seem, they're not just an extension of my own chassis. It is a relief to remove them every once in a while."

Jazz grinned. He had to admit, as beautiful as those mods were on Prowl, they did give his thin frame a slightly bulkier look. And quite frankly, Jazz liked Prowl's frame. He looked around the room. "The place is looking good. You help?"

"A bit," Prowl shrugged. "It isn't really the same without Bulkhead and Sari here, though. I'd do a bit of decorating without Bumblebee here to dictate it, but I think he'd get upset. He's enjoying being in charge of something for once."

Jazz chuckled. "Yeah, he doesn't seem to get a lot of respect around here, does he? Kinda feel sorry for the kid." He kneeled down at the forgotten box of decorations, looking through it.

"There's a _reason_ he doesn't have respect. He needs to _earn_ it. And he isn't mature enough to understand that." Prowl joined him at the box, leaning to gaze over his shoulder.

Jazz glanced at him from his perch right in front of the other cyberninja, spark almost skipping a beat. His faceplate was almost right next to his. It was so tempting… no. He tore his optics off of him and started going through the box again to keep his mind off of it. "Hey, what's this?" He pulled out the mistletoe.

Prowl stared at it a moment, before looking away. "It's nothing."

Jazz quirked an optic ridge. "Nothin'? I never thought I'd hear you refer to somethin' straight off an organic plant as 'nothin'." He held it up to Prowl's faceplate, grinning. "Would look good on you."

Prowl looked decidedly less amused about it, pushing his servos away. "You don't know what you're talking about. I'm going to my room." He turned and stormed away, trying to hide the redness creeping into his faceplate.

Jazz stood there, faceplate falling into a miserable state. "What'd I do _this time_?" he muttered, looking at the glitter-covered plant in his hand. "This is all your fault, you know…" he informed it.

()()()()()

"We're sorry, Prowl, sir," Jetstorm said, holding up a servo. He was standing in front of Prowl's door, Jetfire hovering above him to block his view from the top. "We are being under yellow one's orders not to letting you in."

Prowl's visor narrowed. "Well, I'm telling you to let me enter my room _now_!"

They flinched a bit, but didn't move. They were determined. "We are being very, very sorry, Prowl, sir," Jetfire tried. "We promising you can be coming in soon!"

Prowl opened his mouth again, then closed it, seething. "There had better be a good reason, because I am _not_ in the mood for pointless games," he hissed at them. He then turned on his heelstrut and marched down the hall.

It wasn't long before he slowed to a stop, taking air into his systems slowly to cool them. This wasn't like him. What was _wrong_ with him? He'd just been so _angry_ lately. No, not just angry. His moods were swinging every way possible. Not even a megacycle ago he was perfectly content. Now he felt like kicking every bot in the building. Not exactly the Christmas spirit. He needed to cool it. And he knew somewhere at the moment where 'cool' was a literal state.

Outside, the storm raged on, blinding everything from his sensors to his optics. He couldn't even see more than a few mechanometers in front of him. That was fine, though, since he wasn't wandering away from the building. His heating systems started kicking in, but he didn't mind nor pay attention to it. He wasn't going to stay out there long, only long enough to sort out his thoughts.

Prowl hadn't felt this out of balance in a long time. Not since he came to the dojo that day to see his teacher and everyone else offlined. He'd turned into a wreck. He wanted revenge but didn't know where to turn. Something had set him straight, though, and his feelings of anger and vengeance had washed away. No, not something. Someone he met. But that bot hadn't known who he was, probably still didn't.

"_Master Yoketron wouldn't want me to squander away my lifecycle on revenge. What about you, ninjabot?"_

"Of course not…" Prowl muttered to the wind. "Yoketron would never want me to waste my lifecycle with anger."

This sudden change in him, the mood swings, the anger, when thinking about it he knew where it originated. _"Never could get the hang of the Processor Over Matter stuff. Always did love the helmet, though."_ He clenched his fists. _"My first act as a bounty hunter was betraying my sacred sensei."_ "No…" _"You know, you remind me of someone. Oh yeah. Me." _"NO!" Prowl pivoted and punched the wall behind him. A small surge of pain ran up his arm from his curled servos, but he didn't care. He _had_ him. Three times the bot who killed the only mech who ever cared for him was right there in front of him, and all three times he got away. _"You know, kid, you and me made a pretty good team."_

"I'm… not… like… you!" Prowl screamed, punching the wall with each word. The scream was lost in the howling wind, which sounded as if it was sharing his pain. "You no good…! Thieving…! Son of a _glitch!_" He couldn't hold back anymore. Honestly, the wall probably couldn't take much more. But he didn't care, he had to punch something. Imagine it was that bounty hunter. That lying, cheating… "MURDERER!"

"Prowl!"

Prowl's fist stopped an inch short of the wall. The servos released, laying his palm flat against the wall and sinking to his knees. "It wasn't fair, Jazz…" the air hitched through his intakes. If a bot could cry, he would. "Why…? Why did he have to offline…?"

Jazz moved over to him, kneeling down next to him. "It was his time to go, Prowl. It's like he always said, 'The lifecycle is only as long as the mech is truly needed'."

"But _I_ still needed him…" Prowl muttered miserably. "There was still so much I wanted to learn…"

"I know it doesn't seem right," Jazz said, putting a hand on Prowl's shoulder. "But this isn't just about him, is it? Prowl, you have to tell me, why are you lettin' yourself get so worked up over that bounty bot?"

Prowl stiffened, almost standing up. But Jazz tightened his grip on his shoulder. "Let me go, Jazz."

"No."

Prowl glared at him, though his servos were still trembling against the wall. It wasn't anger that should have been directed at Jazz. But he didn't know how else to escape the black and white cyberninja anymore. "Let me go, there's nothing to tell you."

"No, Prowl, not until you talk about him. You've poured your spark out about Yoketron, our most sacred teacher. But you won't talk to me about this… this bounty hunter!" Now he was starting to get frustrated, which wasn't something he often was. He could usually let anything slide, go about his lifecycle as cool and calm as ever. But this…

There were hundreds of Decepticons still out there for all Jazz knew, now at least five of them currently on Earth, yet Prowl focused all of his anger on Lockdown. Jazz understood being mad that the bounty bot had killed their master, but he could tell that it was more than that. Something about him had driven Prowl almost to obsession.

The black and gold mech glared at him a few kliks more before relenting, sitting back down. "Don't make me talk about it, Jazz. It's nothing I wish you to know. If I tell you…" He leaned against the wall, looking away. "Why do you keep insisting on trying to get so close to me?"

Jazz was taken aback by the sudden change in subject. "Whoa, whoa, we were talkin' about you, not me, Prowl."

"…it's relevant. Connected to what you're asking of me. Tell me the truth."

Jazz looked unsure at first, rubbing the back of his neck components with his right servos. "That depends. Are you going to get mad and snap at me if I tell the truth this time?"

Prowl shook his head. "No. I promise not to be angry. Just tell me why."

Jazz shrugged. "I guess it's cause I like you so much. I mean, I've never found it so hard to tell someone what I think about them, I usually just tell them straight up, dig? But… tellin' you is hard. And it doesn't help that I whenever I try you straight up reject me."

"Which baffles me. No matter how many times I turn you away, you always try again."

"Yeah, guess I'm as stubborn as you are," Jazz grinned. He then went serious again. "Now, you said it was relevant to why you're so hooked on Lockdown. Tell me why."

"Because I'm just like him."

"Wha-?"

Prowl held up a servo to indicate he wasn't done. "Lockdown once pointed out to me that I reminded him of himself. I've tried so hard to deny it. Especially after… after what I learned last time we saw him. But it's true. If it wasn't for another mech I had talked to sheerly by chance, I may have become what Lockdown is. A sparkless monster." He looked away in shame. Jazz couldn't find anything to say. "You think I'm being ridiculous, don't you? But it's true. I was so consumed with anger when Master Yoketron died. I tried to find out who killed him. I wanted revenge. If it wasn't for the mech I talked to, I would have lost myself. And now that I know who it is who did… I'm afraid it may still yet happen."

"No," Jazz shook his head. "No, the Prowl I know would never-"

"I ask you again, like I did before. What do you presume to know about me?"

Jazz shut his mouth. But this time he didn't move. He instead opened it again. "I'd know a whole lot more if you'd stop trying to block me from doing so."

Prowl shook his head. "You do not wish to know me. What you'd find you wouldn't like. That's why I keep pushing you back when you try and get closer. I don't deserve someone like you…" he leaned back against the wall, turning his head away from Jazz. "…and you deserve someone so much better than me…"

"But I don't _want_ someone better than you," Jazz sighed. "It's weird, when I try to tell you how good you are you get mad. Then you turn around and try and act like I'm nothin' _but_ good. No bot's perfect, you know. What's that sayin' SP likes? No bot is innocent?"

Prowl scoffed. "Nothing you could have done could rival my mistakes. Compared to me, you _are_ innocent."

"Now who's assumin' things about other bots?" Jazz smirked. "Maybe I should just turn your words around on you, huh? What do you presume to know about _me_, and all that?"

Prowl tried to be offended by that. But no matter how hard he tried he had to admit that Jazz was right. He shrugged. "You know, the first time I saw you, you were a hologram in the Alkaline dojo. Master Yoketron was so proud of you, but I couldn't understand. It's horrible but all I could see was a cyberninja dojo dropout."

Jazz laughed, much to Prowl's surprise. "That's because I _was_ a dojo dropout," he chuckled.

Prowl shook his head. "But you finished your training."

"Only because the academy rejected me the first time I enrolled." His black and gold companion was taken aback. "Don't look so surprised. Despite my ninja trainin', they still just saw a slacker. Didn't help that a few of the instructors knew me from my Iacon City days. Yoketron had to pull some strings the next century enrollment to get me in."

"He did?"

"Yeah, turned out he had it in pretty tight with Ultra Magnus and one of the council members. They agreed to give me a chance and I jumped on it."

Prowl shook his head again in disbelief. "So if you had been accepted the first time you would have just _quit_ your training?"

"Yep," Jazz grinned. "Not quite the image of me you had, huh? A bad repped slacker dropout."

"Don't forget stubborn," Prowl finally smiled. "I do admit, I like your charms more, though."

"Oh, and what are those?"

Jazz almost jumped when Prowl readjusted himself to lean against him. "Well, in your own odd way you're charismatic, strong, attractive…"

The black and white mech smirked, risking an arm around his companion's waist. "Yeah? Well, you've got more good in you than you think, too. I mean, you're intelligent, witty, caring…"

"Generous, compassionate…"

"Empathetic, pretty…" Their faceplates drew closer.

"Wonderful…" Prowl offlined his optics.

"Beautiful…" Just an inch more…

"Hey, guys!"

Prowl reacted like a startled cat, pushing off of Jazz as quick as lightening, and looking ready to offline Bumblebee as he stood there staring. Unfortunately for Jazz the wind was blowing hard against him and he fell over from the force of it and the push, unkissed and off-balance. He gave the yellow mech next to him an unamused glower. It was hard to take him serious while he was upside-down, though.

"Er… was I interrupting something?" the yellow bug asked nervously.

"No, you simply startled us, that's all," Prowl said, regaining his composure. "Was there something you needed?"

"Oh, yeah, come on. I need to show you something!" Bumblebee said. "You should probably come in anyway, your systems are gonna freeze out here!"

Prowl helped Jazz back up, giving him a slightly apologetic smile, and followed the younger mech as he ran down the hall to Prowl's room. He skid to a stop and cleared his vocals as he waited for the two ninjabots.

"The twins and I decided we needed a Christmas tree. And because _you_ are the only mech in the _universe_ who keeps a tree ready…" he slid the door open and gestured inside.

Prowl gasped, visor widening. The barren, snow covered tree that resided in his quarters was now glittering and glowing with strings of tinsel, ornaments of all shapes and sizes, and strings of bright lights. The tree wasn't the only thing decorated, though. His walls were strung with colorful lights, anything tinsel could be strung from it was, and he had to move to his shelf and pick up Yoketron's helmet to believe it. On it was a pair of reindeer antlers.

"That was being our idea," Jetstorm grinned over Prowl's shoulder. Jetfire mirrored the grin at the other one.

Prowl couldn't believe it. They had given his sacred and honored sensei _antlers_. He felt he should have been offended, angry even. Instead… he laughed. Laughed loud and long, more than he could remember doing so before. After a few moments, he finally calmed, turning to the three young mechs who looked proud of themselves. He bowed respectively. "Thank you. All three of you. I am sorry for yelling earlier, I was simply frustrated. It's not even Christmas yet, but… you have given me a wonderful gift."

"How are you keepin' the wind and snow out, though?" Jazz asked.

"Seeing for yourself!" Jetfire replied, running to the hole in the room. They joined him and marveled. There was a perfect dome of thick ice surrounding the tree and covering the hole all the way to the roof, sealing it off. It cast an almost crystalline blue glow on the tree.

"Astounding…" Prowl breathed out.

"I got the idea from a show about the North Pole and Eskimos," Bumblebee grinned. "So I put Jetstorm to work and Jetfire cleared out the remaining snow."

"Eskimos don't… nevermind…" Prowl sighed. "Again, thank you. You cannot guess how much this meant to me."

"Come on, we should get Optimus to see!" Bumblebee told the twins, running out. The two Junior Officers followed.

Jazz shook his head, smiling. "Those're some good kids." He picked up Yoketron's helmet. "A bit strange," he added, looking at the antlers, "but good. I would'a thought you'd get mad at this."

"Me, too. But then I imagined Yoketron wearing it with the antlers, smiling and noble…" he walked over and joined Jazz, looking at the helmet. "And I thought of what he'd say. And it was the funniest thing I'd ever imagined."

"What did you think he'd say?" Jazz asked.

"What do _you_ think?"

Jazz thought a moment, staring at it. He then grinned. "'He who can laugh at himself is truly the wisest of bots,'" he recited. Prowl nodded.

The gold and black ninjabot's optics wandered until he saw something hanging on his door. He smiled. Bumblebee must have gone back for it. "Jazz, you asked me what the branch you held before was."

"Yeah?" the black and white mech said, putting the helmet back.

"Well, I suppose you can know now. It's name is 'mistletoe', and it has a very special tradition here on Earth."

"Really? What is it?"

Prowl pointed above the door. There was the mistletoe. "If you stand under it something is supposed to happen."

"Oh, yeah? What?" Jazz asked, moving under the door to look at it.

Prowl smiled. "Shutter your optics and see for yourself."

Jazz did as he was told and waited. A moment later he felt something warm against his lip components. He onlined an optic in surprise to find Prowl's face against his, kissing him gently. He offlined the optic again and wrapped his arms around Prowls' thin waist, kissing back. Prowl finally broke the kiss, pulling back.

"So…" Jazz said slyly. "It takes a sprig of mistletoe to get a kiss from you?"

Prowl shook his head. "No, it takes a bot who can open my optics. The mistletoe does help, though."

Jazz chuckled. "You're a strange mech, ninjabot."

"You like it…"

()()()()

"Come on, this way!"

"We're coming!" Optimus called after Bumblebee.

"This had better not be like the last surprise," Ratchet muttered.

"Oh, no, we are promising, Ratchet, sir," Jetfire assured him. "This time is being real, good surprise."

"What's going on?" Sentinel emerged from one of the rooms where he had been making _more_ reports. It seemed all he felt inclined to do while stuck in that place.

"Bumblebee and the twins want to show us something," Optimus shrugged.

"In here!" Jetstorm said at Prowl's door.

"That's weird, I don't think I closed the door," Bumblebee said. He pushed the button and the door slid open. What made everyone stop and stare wasn't the decorations, though.

Jazz sat at the tree, Prowl straddling his lap, both illuminated by the ethereal glow of the ice barrier. Their lips were locked together in a passionate kiss. At least, until Sentinel broke the silence.

"Jazz!"

Prowl broke away, glowering at them. "Do you _mind_?" he asked indignantly.

Jazz gave them an equally annoyed look. "Seriously, is it possible to get five kliks of privacy around here?"

"Sorry!" Optimus apologized quickly, pushing the button to shut the door again.

There was an awkward silence. "Well," Sentinel finally broke it, "It was definitely a surprise."

"I'm going to learn one day not to come along during these little 'surprises'…" Ratchet grumbled, turning to return to his work.

Optimus cleared his vocals. "Well, at least the room _does_ look nice."

"Thanks, 'Optimist Prime'," Sentinel muttered.


	7. Blackout

**Disclaimer:** Six disclaimers later, nothing's changed. I haven't gotten rich and bought all of these rights from Hasbro and Takara yet. Sorry.

**Note 1:** This one is for Jessangel249, who is nice and patient enough for the _real_ Jettwin cuteness! Okay, so the cute got a bit drowned out in the creepy, but I do have to finish this fic to write the sequel at some point, lol!

**Note 2:** If you're wondering, the idea of the "cracked-helmet femme" with the wires hanging over her face is indeed a nod to the long-haired women famed in Japanese Horror movies.

**Note 3: **This chapter was mostly made because, since I'm rewriting Animated history from the Christmas of Season 3 I didn't want to forget about Soundwave's plot. I had to tweak it a bit, so no we're not going to see Humanformers again (sorry), but it will integrate into the sequel fic. I can't say anymore without giving away spoilers for this fanfic.

**Note 4: **7 Chapters. 52 Reviews. 3,735 Hits. 32 Favs. 30 Alerts. Those are the stats for this fanfic upon my typing this message. HOLY PRIMUS. I never expected this fanfic to reach this! Thank you so much to all of my readers and fans! Keep reading! Pit, go read my other fanfics while you're at it, lol! They need this much love! X3

**Chapter Warnings:** A little Jazz/Prowl suggestion, but other than that not really anything.

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Jessangel249 - **Again, thank you for your patience! Here's your chapter, and I'm glad you enjoyed the Jettwin cuteness of the last one!**  
Flarey Phoenix - **Haha, thank you very much! I'm glad you liked that last chapter I did for you, and remember to keep singin' those Christmas carols in July! X3**  
Stormx - **Oh my Primus, I know, right? No one ever seems to address the "Lockdown killed my sacred sensei" issue, do they? Thanks for keepin' on reading!**  
Independent.C. - **Why is it that I get asked to do lots of Sentinel bashing every chapter? …oh, yeah, cause he's a jerk and deserves it, lol. Don't worry, there's no Sentinel bashing this chapter (as he doesn't appear), but there will be plenty of it in chapters to come, as well as in the sequel.**  
DreamFeathers** - Come, now. If you wanted straight bots, would you still be reading this? 8D**  
The Muffinator 3** - The D'Urbervilles, you say? Can't say I've ever heard of it. Sounds like an interesting read if it's got similarities to my fanfics, lol. --toot toot goes my horn!--**  
MusicLover48**, **dejavu**, **I play wid fir3**, **PrancingTiger86**, **Sena-kun**, **ShadowedBlossom**, **flamingmarsh**, and** Shizuka Taiyou - **Thank you for the reading and reviewing! Please keep reading and enjoying, if you so wish! Remember, everyone, I love me my feedback! 8D

**Chapter 7  
Blackout**

"You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch…"

Five mechs sat around the television, watching Bumblebee's favorite Christmas movie. The twins, Jetfire and Jetstorm, curled up on one side of the large, concrete couch together, Bumblebee sitting on the other side. Jazz leaned back against it on the floor. Prowl snuggled up to him. It was getting dark, not that anyone could tell with the snowstorm.

"So, let me get this straight," Jazz said, popping an Energon snack in his mouth. "So this guy hates Christmas cause people sing durin' it, and he thinks it's loud and annoyin'."

Prowl shrugged, reaching into the bowl. "Pretty much."

"Why does he not simply turn off his audio receptors, like we are doing when Sentinel Prime, sir, is much yelling?" Jetfire asked.

"You do?" Bumblebee snorted. "We used to do that in Boot Camp, too. Then he'd yell at us more for turning them off, even though we still couldn't hear. He'd eventually give up and have us drive laps for ignoring him, but it was worth it."

"That's an old tradition. I used to do that with my instructors," Jazz laughed. "'Cept they had more patience. They wouldn't let us leave unless we could tell them everythin' they just said. So we _had_ to listen."

"Ouch," Bumblebee cringed. He then perked up. "Oh, shh! This is my favorite part!"

"…as cuddly as a cactus, you're a charming as an--"

The television suddenly went off, the entire warehouse being drowned in darkness.

"What happened?" Jetstorm asked.

"Aw, man! The storm must've caused a blackout!" Bumblebee groaned.

"I can't be seeing a thing," the blue and yellow twin complained.

"Holding on," Jetfire replied. There was a clicking sound as he snapped his servos a few times. Finally a small flame appeared at his servos.

"Whoa, that was cool!" the yellow bug said.

"I am seeing it on Earth internet show about tiny organic and big metal brother last time we are being here," Jetfire grinned.

"Hey, where'd Prowl go?"

Jazz shrugged. "He'll be back."

The flame at Jetfire's servos suddenly went out. "Oh, shoot. Holding on again." He snapped a few more times and it lit again.

Bumblebee yelped, Prowl all of a sudden being in the spot next to Jazz at Bumblebee's pedes again. "I _hate_ when you do the ninja thing without warning!"

"If I warned you, I wouldn't be a very _good_ ninja," Prowl grinned slyly. He then held up a device like a Cybertronian-sized lantern. "I thought we could use a little illumination." He clicked it on and it brightened the small area they were in, casting eerie shadows on the rest of the room. Jetfire put out the flame.

"I could only find two. Here," Prowl gave the other lantern to Bumblebee. "Remember they have limited power. Don't leave it on when you recharge."

"I won't, mom," Bumblebee muttered.

"Would you like us to find you two a place to recharge?" Prowl asked the twins.

"That is being okay, Prowl, sir," Jetstorm waved him off.

"We can recharge here," Jetfire added. "But thank you."

"SP'll probably recharge in his pseudo-office he claimed here," Jazz said. "But I think I know where _I'm_ rechargin'." He grinned at Prowl.

Prowl half-smirked. "Oh, _do_ you?" he asked. "And what makes you think I'll let you recharge where you think?"

"Because you wouldn't let me recharge cold…"

"You seem to be under the impression that I'm generous," Prowl teased.

"_I'm_ going to recharge before you get mushy," Bumblebee muttered. He turned on his lantern and left with a, "Good night."

Prowl chuckled. "Perhaps we should check in with the others. Then we'll hit the berth." He started to leave as well.

"Sure," Jazz stood up. "Night, guys."

"Good night, Jazz and Prowl, sirs!" the twins chorused.

The room was once again plunged into darkness as the cyberninjas left. In the silence, wind howled and the warehouse creaked. Jetstorm stretched across the length of the sofa, Jetfire laying with his head on his brother's chestplate.

"Brother?"

"Hmm?" Jetstorm lifted his head, visor glowing soft blue in the dark.

"We are being very far from home."

This time Jetstorm sat up, Jetfire sliding off of him. There was something odd about how he had said it. "Yes, but we have been here before."

"But last time we are having things to do. Catch traitor. Fight Decepticons. Now we are just waiting. Now I can thinking of where we are. And… it is very far."

Jetstorm sighed. He'd known there was something wrong, he always did. And he knew it had something to do with where they were. "I thought you are liking Earth."

"I am, very much!" Jetfire assured him quickly. "But… I was liking it better when we were recharging on our berth in this ship. In here it is being very different."

The blue and yellow twin made a confused face in the dark. So much had changed in the last few stellar cycles that a little change in environment couldn't be bothering his brother. And for the first time in centuries, Jetfire had actively severed their bond. "Brother. We are promising no secrets," he said sternly.

Jetfire didn't speak for a few moments. He knew he shouldn't keep anything from his brother. But he didn't want him to worry. "It is just… it is being dark, and cold… and too much like days in Energon Refinery."

Jetstorm sighed. They finally reached the root of the problem. He should have known. The dark, cold room. Huddling together against a small space, in this case the concrete couch. Eerie noises filling their audio receptors. It was all a lot like trying to recharge at the Energon Refinery they used to work at. They'd never asked to be refinery bots. They didn't ask to be soldiers, either. They had control over nothing in their lifecycles, and the fact that it included poor Jetfire's flamethrowers didn't help. They'd spent their entire short lifecycles being thrown into tasks without a choice, ordered around by such bots as Hammer Drive and Sentinel Prime without rest. At least with the Elite Guard the living conditions were, well, livable. The refinery was the worst, being worked almost to offline, no other mechs than themselves to call friends, being constantly exposed to dangerous environments where an accident was almost sure to happen. Then again, if it wasn't for an accident that _did_ occur, they never would have become what they were. Never would have met such bots as maternal Red Alert, patient Perceptor, or cheerful Wheeljack.

"Those days are long since being over," Jetstorm assured his brother. "We are not in Refinery anymore, we are being heroes. This is simply being… lull in heroic work."

There was a silence, but Jetstorm's worry melted away when he felt his brother press himself into him again. "I am knowing…" he muttered as they lay back down together again. "Am simply… being paranoid. I am being fine, promise."

"No more secrets?" Jetstorm asked before shuttering his optics.

"Promising, no more."

"Good. Because if you are keeping them again, I will be thumping you." Jetstorm smiled, falling into recharge.

But Jetfire found he couldn't, not even with their bond reinstated. It was soothing and nice, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. It was like Red Alert had said, even the twins didn't agree on _everything_. And one of those things had always been the refinery. Jetstorm didn't like it either, but he somehow managed to make it work for him. He had accepted it was what they were probably going to be doing for the rest of their lifecycles, no matter how they objected, and just went with it. Jetfire could never accept it, though. All of those silly little dreams he had of the cyber-circus he used to keep himself from becoming depressed. But Jetstorm never understood the point of imagining being something he couldn't. Not many bots did. Jetfire had asked Perceptor about it once. The scientist said that it wasn't in a bot's natural programming to want something he could never have. But he then assured the orange and white twin that there was nothing wrong with being different than other bots. It simply made him special.

CLICKCLICKCLICK

Jetfire pushed himself off of his brother again, being careful not to awaken him. He knew the place spooked him, but… that couldn't have been his overactive imagination circuit. Could it?

CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK

The sound was softer and faster this time, but it was definitely there. "Bro-" Jetfire stopped. No, he didn't want to worry Jetstorm. He was already worried enough about the orange and white mech. No need to alarm him over a sound so small.

It was too late, though, as Jetstorm sat up again, looking groggy. "What is it being, brother?" he asked, lifting his visor and rubbing his optics.

"It is nothing. I… I thought I heard something."

Now Jetstorm was more alert. "Are you sure? Should we be checking?"

Jetfire hesitated. 'No secrets, I was promising,' he reminded himself. "Sure, but I am sure it is being nothing." With a snap the flame appeared at his servos again. "I am hearing it this way."

The twins made their way slowly down the hall, Jetfire lighting the way and Jetstorm watching their backs.

CLICKCLICKCLICK

Jetfire stopped, looking back at his brother. "Did you hear that?"

"Yes."

"I was afraid so. Now I cannot tell myself it is being imagination circuit anymore."

"What's going on out here?" Bumblebee stuck his head out of his room. "Oh, it's you guys. Are you making that annoying tapping noise?"

The twins shook their heads. "No," Jetstorm said. "We are following it."

"Cool, I'll come, too," the yellow bug grinned. He disappeared a moment, then came back with his lantern. "I've been too excited to recharge, anyway." He turned it on and replaced the dim light of Jetfire's flame.

"I am thinking this way," the orange and white twin pointed down the dark hallway. They continued down, staying close to each other. "What is being down here?"

"Just the factory part. We usually use it as training. Well, Prowl does anyway. Sari and I use it to compete. Bulkhead doesn't like going in there. I wonder how they're doing, anyway?"

CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK

They jumped all three jumped, clinging to each other. In the dark, creepy warehouse the light taps sounded as loud as thunder to them against the howling wind outside.

"Th-this is just like in C-Cold Steel when the young b-bots were wandering the old refinery, and the femme with a c-cracked helmet and the wires hanging over her f-face attacked and offlined two of them by d-dragging them into the sh-shadows…" Bumblebee gulped.

"I-is just a h-holovid! Th-there is no c-cracked-helmet f-femme!" Jetstorm stuttered out.

"R-right," Jetfire nodded. "I-it is p-p-probably nothing."

CLICKCLICKCLICK

The noise receded back to the factory. The three relaxed, pressure releasing from the vents in their chassis' with a WHOOSH.

"We are being ridiculous," Jetstorm determined. "Being nervous about a silly holovid. Is not real."

"Yeah, what're we thinking?" Bumblebee laughed it off. "Come on, let's check it out. It's probably a mouse or something taking cover from the storm." Resolve strengthened, he moved on.

The twins followed, Jetfire clinging to his brother. Jetstorm glanced at Bumblebee then put his servo on the other twin's arm, strengthening their bond again.

'_You are quiet,'_ he whispered through their connection.

'_I am not liking this,'_ Jetfire replied.

'_What do you mean?'_

'_I am having bad feeling.'_

'_This is not about holovid, is it?'_

'_No, is… different. Something bad.'_

'…_I feel it too.'_ Jetstorm squeezed his arm gently in assurance. _'Do not worry, I am being here. Just do not lose control.'_

'_I won't. Promise.'_

"Are you guys frozen back there?" Bumblebee's voice penetrated their conversation. "Come on, we're here!"

Bumblebee pointed the lantern inside the factory. The machines cast eerie shadows. The wind continued to howl. Their pedes clanked against the cement floor as they carefully made their way in, staying close to each other.

"If there's a cracked helmet femme here, now's the time to suck out our sparks…" Bumblebee whispered.

"Shh!" Jetfire suddenly stopped, hydraulics running cold in his tubing.

CLINKCLINK…

They turned slowly, air catching in their vents. Bumblebee cast the lantern but they didn't see anything. They relaxed again and Bumblebee lowered the light.

"Aah!"

The yellow mech yelped at the little blue robot on the ground before them. "I hate these things!" he huffed, bending down. He didn't touch it, though. "Powell made a bunch of these little Soundwave toys. They're based on a homicidal Decepticon that used to be a bigger version of it. Soundwave was destroyed, but I don't trust these things." He stood up, looking serious. "I don't know how it got in here, but I'm gonna get Ratchet. Make sure this doesn't move. And _don't touch it_."

Jetfire lit his servos again as the light of the lantern left.

"I am not seeing what is so bad about this tiny thing," Jetstorm muttered, kneeling next to it. "It sounds like joke to…" he trailed off, looking at his brother.

Jetfire stood stock still, staring blankly at the toy. The flame in his hand flickered.

"Brother?" Jetstorm cautiously stood up and approached him. The other twin didn't move. Jetstorm tried putting a hand on his shoulder. _"Brother!"_ he repeated forcefully.

"Ah!" Jetfire started, the flame in his hand flaring dangerously.

"Brother, careful!" Jetstorm yelped, grabbing the hand in his servos. A funnel of wind and ice surrounded it and the flame died out in seconds. He sighed in relief. "What was wrong with-?"

CLINKCLINKCLINK

The twins whirled quickly to see the little toy retreat around one of the machines. "Get it!" they yelped at the same time. Jetstorm went one way and Jetfire the other to try and surround it.

Jetfire's processor was racing. What had happened? Almost as soon as Bumblebee had left his processor had… zoned out. He couldn't even feel his brother until they touched. It was… frightening. He'd never felt so alone, not even when Sentinel Prime would separate them for punishment.

He shook it off when he saw the toy. It was standing at one of the machines, then dashed behind it.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Jetfire called after it, following quickly. "Brother! I found-"

He stopped. That sound. It wasn't going through his audio receptors, but instead seemed to cut straight into his processor and numb it. He knew what it was, they heard Jazz and Bumblebee both use it. They'd even been listening to a variation of it during their movie:

Music.

The feeling from before filled him again as the music enveloped him. The empty loneliness.

()()()

Jetstorm rushed toward the sound of his brother's audios. Something was wrong. He was starting to feel dread.

"Brother, where are you?" he called. He'd tried to call through their bond, but something was interfering. He figured Jetfire couldn't have gone far, though. He couldn't go outside, and Bumblebee would be returning soon with Ratchet. That meant the hall was covered, so he had to still be there. "Brother!" he was especially worried when he thought about his unusual behavior earlier.

"Why are you shouting?" Jetstorm stopped and turned to face his twin. It was odd, why hadn't he felt the other's presence? Jetfire was holding the little toy Soundwave in one hand. He had the same blank stare as before. His vocals were low and even. "I'm right here, brother…"


	8. Eve

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything this chapter. You know, like the other seven chapters I've had to say this. Why do I have to do this every chapter again? Oh yeah, cause apparently I can be sued if I don't. Figures.**

**Note: **D8 Sorry for the extremely late chapter! You wouldn't believe the fanfic slump I've been in. But then I looked at the calendar and said, "Holy crap, I've only got a month and a half before Christmas! Fingers, get typing!" Well, now I've only got three more chapters to do in 32 days. I'm boned.

**Note 2: **Special thanks to **Ralyena Starrling **who took the time to PM me to get off my lazy butt and finish this chapter! Just a note to my readers, I love talking to you guys so don't hesitate to PM me if you have any questions, suggestions, or just want to talk!

**WARNINGS: Some Jetwincest at the end of this chapter, you have been warned! It's nothing graphic (cause I didn't want to up the rating, lol), so don't be too worried about it.**

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Evil E. Evil - **Patience, young Padawan (yes, I'm one of _those_, lol). Shockwave will get his dues. But you must be _patient_.**  
Jessangel249 - **::bows repeatedly:: Sorry sorry sorry! I couldn't get this up in time for you, I feel so bad! I really tried, really! You just wouldn't believe how hard it's been for me to update anything the last couple of months…**  
Independent.C - **Well, I never said cease the Sentinel bashing requests, cause they're extremely fun to write as well, lol. Sorry if the Jetwincest isn't to your liking. I rather adore it, so I tend to like writing it.**  
DreamFeathers - **Unfortunately, no, we won't be going Human Error. If you like the Human Error stuff, though, you can read my fanfic Elite Guard Heroes. And don't mind my obsession with Jack/Percy, I have a weakness for that pairing. ::giggle::**  
MusicLover48**, **ShadowedBlossom**, **flamingmarsh**, **Hiezen Uchiha**, **sweetyamiyugigirl**, **Sena-kun**, **TransformersLuver**, **Stormx**, and **Shizuka Taiyou - **::whew:: Thanks for all of the reading and reviewing! Please continue if you please! Remember everyone, reviews fuel my need to keep writing giant robot cuteness, fluffiness, and slash! 8D

**Chapter 8****  
Eve**

"Unh…"

"I think he's coming to!"

"Kid? Kid! You alright?"

Jetfire onlined an optic slowly, static gradually clearing to reveal the worried faces of his teammates hovering over him. Jetstorm pushed his way between Bumblebee and Optimus, reaching out and covering his brother's servos with his own. "Brother, are you okay?" he asked quickly.

"Yes… but what…?" Jetfire stopped, his processor snapping into focus as he discovered he couldn't move. He quickly looked down to his wrists. "S-stasis cuffs? What-?!"

"I'm being very sorry, brother!" Jetstorm interjected. "We… we are having no choice! If we do not use stasis cuffs, you would have…" he trailed off, biting his lower lip component. He still hung onto his brother's servos.

"Would have what? What is going on?" the orange and white twin asked, optics wide.

Jazz spoke up. "Somethin' major was messin' with your processor," he said, tapping his helm with a digit. "Bumblebee came runnin' down the hall, sayin' you'd gone mad or somethin'. When we got there, you were, well…" he trailed off as well.

"You were trying to fricassee your brother," Sentinel finished for him. He looked far less sympathetic than the others. "He didn't look like he'd hold out much longer, so Optimus started dousing you to keep your flamethrowers from burning down the whole slagging warehouse. It then took both of the ninjabots to get the cuffs on you. I… gave orders from a safe distance."

"In other words he was too scared out of his chassis to help," Bumblebee muttered.

"Can it, cog!"

"I… I tried to hurt brother?" Jetfire asked quietly.

Jetstorm squeezed his servos reassuringly. He then looked at Sentinel. "He seems to being okay now, can we take them off?"

The temporary Magnus looked unsure. Optimus spoke up. "It does seem he's over whatever got into him. Let him go."

"_But_," Sentinel added, hating to be overstepped, "One more sign he's even _thinking_ of losing it again and the cuffs go back on. _Permanently_."

Jetstorm nodded in understanding and released the cuffs. His brother sat up, rubbing the feeling back into his tingling wrists. "I don't remember anything…" Jetfire said, concentrating. "I am remembering… chasing toy. Then… I am cornering it. But then there is… is music."

"Music?" Jazz's attention piqued.

"Yes, is… very loud in processor. Then… then nothing…" He shuddered, his brother pulling him into a hug.

"During it I couldn't feel you either…" the blue and yellow twin muttered.

"It sounds like Soundwave's handiwork alright," Ratchet confirmed, knocking on a clear box. The toy sat in it, unmoving. "Soundproof Plexiglas. Sari and I made it when we heard these things were being manufactured. We wanted to be ready for just such an occasion."

"What I am not understanding is why I was not hearing music," Jetstorm said. "I was being near the toy as well."

"It's possible that thing wasn't actually playing the music, but instead was transmitting it like a signal," Jazz said thoughtfully.

"Where is being Prowl, sir?" Jetfire asked, realizing the group was down one ninjabot.

"He's making sure that was the only one of those toys here," Optimus answered. "After all, if any of us can resist whatever control these things are using, it'll be him."

()()()

A little blue toy robot scurried across the floor. His brother had been caught, but he was determined to finish his mission. The other toy had managed to subdue the processor of one of the traitors to robot kind, but he needed to subdue the other twin to complete their phase of the plan. Voices could be heard from the room he approached. Just a little farther, and…

_CLUNK_

The toy was stopped as a clear box slammed down around it. It looked up and the data files uploaded into it's tiny processor identified the ninjabot designated as Prowl.

"Got you."

()()()

Prowl slid the box's bottom wall into place, lifting the whole box to see. The Soundwave toy inside simply ceased movement, resuming it's façade as a harmless toy robot.

"Good job, Prowl," Optimus said, exiting the nearby room to join him. "Is this the only other one?" He rapped a servo against the Plexiglas. The toy still remained unmoving.

"Yes. I searched the premises, tracking the energy signature I copied from the first one. This was the only other toy I detected." Prowl glanced over his leader's shoulder plate at the four Elite Guard members, who were discussing something seriously. "How is Jetfire?"

"About as well as expected," Optimus replied, glancing over as well. "Better, in fact. Isolating the toys appears to negate their effect. Jazz suspects they may be transmitting a signal directly to into their victim's processor."

"My concern is how they got in here." The ninjabot glanced back down at the idling little robot. "And the sheer fact that they have proven that they are as we feared, much more than simple toys. This suggests that Soundwave isn't as offline as we thought."

"Or Powell could be controlling them. He does have quite a vendetta against us."

Prowl considered it. "No," he finally decided. "He isn't crafty enough to use such a small thing as a means for revenge. And it's too subtle for the Headmaster, who is still in jail anyway. No, these know the inner workings of the Cybertronian processor well enough to target specific coding. Soundwave, however, was sparked here on Earth and hasn't had the opportunity to study such things. No, while I'm sure he is behind this, I don't think he's working alone." He glanced around the room. Bumblebee was sitting in the corner, sulking. "Here," he handed the box to a puzzled Optimus, making his way over. He leaned against the wall next to him casually. "You seem particularly miffed," he pointed out.

"Of course I am!" the yellow bug snapped. "This isn't exactly how I wanted to start my Christmas Eve! No Sari or Bulkhead, having to deal with Loudmouth Prime, someone getting their processor scrambled… I'm about ready to say _bah humbug_!"

The ninjabot gave him a surprised look. "That doesn't sound like the Bumblebee I know," he said slyly.

"Yeah, well, what do you know?" Bumblebee huffed.

"I know that the Bumblebee _I_ know would never let a few speed bumps slow him down. No, he would hit the gas and meet them head on."

Bumblebee looked a little thoughtful for a moment, but didn't reply.

Prowl didn't want to resort to this, but the yellow bug forced his hand. "What would Blurr think if he saw you giving up because of this?"

At the mention of the still missing speedster, Bumblebee finally looked up at him in surprise. Then determination. "You know what? You're right! I can't let this little speed bump slow me down! I've gotta keep going forward! I can get over this, just gotta hit it fast enough!" He turned and raced out of the room, determination pumping in his spark.

Prowl just smiled lightly, watching him. "That was pretty impressive," Jazz grinned as he approached, leaning on the wall next to him. "How did you know bringing up Blurr would get him going?"

"Because Bumblebee is nothing if not competitive. And quite frankly, if you compare him to Blurr in _anything_ ever since we met him he'll move faster than ever." There was a moment of silence before he asked, "Has anyone been able to contact him yet?"

Jazz shook his head solemnly. "We've been tryin' to get contact with him, but to no avail, y'know? It's like he just… dropped out of the universe or something. A lot of bots are startin' to agree with Sentinel that he's probably… probably not online anymore. I think we're just not lookin' hard enough."

"I suppose until we know for sure we shouldn't indulge Bumblebee with any of our theories. He and Blurr seemed to get along amazingly."

"I'm not surprised, they're practically two bots of a kind. Blurr's just a little faster," Jazz chuckled.

Prowl smirked. "Don't tell Bumblebee that. He may blow a circuit." He then turned serious again. "Do you really think the control over Jetfire was done through a signal?"

"I'm almost a hundred percent positive. Jetstorm says he couldn't hear the music that was controllin' him, so it couldn't'a been comin' directly from that little robot." They looked at the now two Plexiglas boxes sitting next to each other. The robots seemed harmless, sitting unmoving in their prisons. "The only explanation I can think of is that those things have transmitters inside of them that beam the music directly into the processor."

"Whatever it is, we'll find out when Ratchet runs a scan on them. How did Jetfire check out?"

"Ratchet said other than the slight scramblin' of his processor, Jetfire's perfectly normal. Course, he also said he's never checked on somebot with such unique circuitry before, so he can't be completely certain. But he ran the comparison next to his bro and they're both functionin' about the same."

"Good. I believe I understand Bumblebee's frustration. It would be a pity to let anything else ruin this Christmas, not just for us but for everyone here who hasn't seen one before."

()()()()()()

"_I'm dreaming of a white Christmas…"_

With the power still out, Bumblebee and Optimus's vocals filled in a bit of Christmas cheer to the warehouse. They had all gone back to recharge after the excitement. But now that the sun was up (or at least it was according to their internal clocks, the snow still storming and covering the poor thing), Bumblebee was renewed in his determination to bring the cheer back into their holiday.

"There's a bit of irony in that song at the moment," Prowl pointed out. They were once again putting up decorations in the sitting room, the ones remaining from the mass-decorating of Prowl's room, anyway. "All things considered, I could go for a warm Christmas myself at the moment. I've had enough white in the last few days to last me the next year."

"I hate to agree with him, but I'm freezing my tailpipe here," Sentinel complained. "And watching you cogs put up this slag isn't helping my mood."

"It's not slag!" Bumblebee insisted, sticking his glossa out at him. "It's Christmas decorations! You saw them in Prowl's room. Er… assuming you weren't too distracted."

"_Drop it!_" Prowl snapped. Jazz chuckled. They both sat relaxing on the concrete sofa.

"Well, at least we're still getting presents," the yellow bug grinned, handing the remaining strings of lights up to Jetfire and Jetstorm, who strung them high on the walls.

"Will we be getting presents, too?" Jetstorm asked.

"Well, I don't see why not," Bumblebee shrugged. "I mean, we all got presents last year, and we're not from Earth. I don't think this Santa guy is too picky."

"According to the Earth children lore, he gives to the good. He gives coal to the bad people, but I'm not sure how that's supposed to be a deterrent…" Optimus explains.

"Sounds more like something you give old bots to run on," the yellow mech grinned. At a look from Ratchet, who was trying to get the power running again on the other end of the room, he quickly added, "Present company excluded, of course!"

"Of course," Ratchet muttered. He then slammed the power box closed. "Well, it's official. Without runnin' another power source through it, I can't fix the slaggin' power. We're just gonna hafta make do."

"Why not have Bumblebee zap it?" Jazz suggested.

Ratchet shook his head. "That'd only be a temporary solution. This place runs on even more primitive technology than the rest of Detroit. It would only run for maybe an hour or two. And by the time the power decided to turn back on itself, the kid'll pro'bly have fried the circuits to disrepair anyway."

"Hey!"

"Aren't Earth building having alternative power sources?" Jetfire asked. "You know, for emergencies?"

"Gee, why didn't I think of that?" Ratchet asked sarcastically. "Oh, wait, I _did!_ The slaggin' generator just happens to be ancient and doesn't like workin' sometimes. Guess what? Now's one of those times! It won't no matter how many times I hit it with a wrench. We'd need Miracle-Cure Sari and her All-Spark powers to get that thing to work."

"Then what are you three glitches bothering to put lights up for?" Sentinel asked Bumblebee and the twins.

The three shrugged. "Just in case, I guess," the yellow bug answered. "It's always a good idea to be prepared. Isn't that something _you_ taught us?"

"I don't like your tone, glitch…" Sentinel warned.

"Ah-ah-ah!" Bumblebee tsked him. "Don't make Santa Claus think you're a bad bot!" He then began singing loudly.

"_You better watch out  
You better not cry  
You better not pout  
I'm telling you why  
Santa Claus is coming to town_!"

Optimus picked up where he left off.

"_He's making a list  
__Checking it twice__  
Gonna find out who's naughty or nice  
Santa Claus is coming to town_!"

"_He sees you when you're sleeping_," Bumblebee continued.

"_He knows when you're awake_," Optimus chorused.

"_He knows when you've been bad or good..."_

_"So be good for goodness sake_!" they both chorused together.

"This guy's sounding less like a philanthropist and more like a creepy old stalker…" Sentinel muttered.

"Yeah, it's not his friendliest song…" Bumblebee said thoughtfully. "How about…

"_Up on the rooftop reindeer paws  
Out jumps good ol' Santa Claus!  
Down through the chimney with lots of toys  
All for the little one's Christmas joys_!"

"Now he's breaking and entering?" Sentinel raised an optic ridge.

"You know, you take all the fun out of Christmas songs…" Bumblebee muttered.

"I miss the point of them."

"Sentinel isn't that into music," Jazz grinned. "I'm liking them, though. Keep it up. Try something that isn't to do with Claus."

"Hmm…" The mechs all thought for a moment. Surprisingly, Prowl was the one who began singing.

"_Chestnuts roasting on an open fire  
__Jack Frost nipping at your nose__  
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir  
And folks dressed up like Eskimos_

"_Everybody knows__The turkey and some mistletoe  
Help to make the season bright__  
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow  
Will find it hard to sleep tonight_

"_They know that Santa's on his way__  
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh__  
And every mother's child is going to spy  
To see if reindeer really know how to fly_

"_And so I'm offering this simple phrase  
To folks from one to ninety-two  
Though it's been hard  
Many times, many ways  
Merry Christmas to you…"_

There was a small pause. Everyone was staring at him. "What?" he asked, glowering back.

"Nothing," Optimus said quickly. "Just… wow…"

"Yeah, wow," Jazz grinned. "I didn't know you had it in you."

"Where'd you learn to sing like that?" Bumblebee asked, leaning on the back of the sofa.

Prowl's faceplate turned a bit red. "I do not usually indulge in such pointless displays of the vocals. I was simply responding to an inquiry."

"I admit to being surprised. I never pegged you as the music-loving type," Sentinel pointed out. "You at least seemed like the kind to find something better to waste your time with than that."

"I am thinking it was being wonderful, Prowl, sir!" Jetfire enthused, hovering over, his brother on his tail. They settled on the back of the sofa.

"Sing something else!" Jetstorm requested.

"I don't know…" Prowl looked embarrassed, unable to hide it for once. He hadn't realized he'd start something.

"Oh, leave the kid alone," Ratchet snapped. "If Prowl doesn't wanna entertain you, he doesn't have to."

"Aww…" the twins and Bumblebee looked disappointed.

Now Prowl felt bad. "Alright, one more song," he finally conceded.

"_Holy and the Ivy  
Mistletoe and kisses  
Grandma telling stories  
On this holy night…"_

()()()()()()

Sentinel left as soon as Bumblebee started teaching the twins some of the louder Christmas carols. By the 7th day of Christmas, Ratchet couldn't take it anymore either and left with his servos in his audio receptors. Prowl, Optimus, and Jazz resolutely braved their rendition of the more cheery songs. They already covered Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frost the Snowman, and Jingle Bells.

They were now singing The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, and the twins were learning fast. They sang, laughed, and everyone was cheery. At least, until Bumblebee suddenly yelped. "Oh, no!" he groaned.

"What's wrong?" Optimus asked. They were all sitting around the sofa, unable to watch television, but done with the decorations. The carols were keeping them entertained.

"We don't have milk or cookies!" the yellow bug pouted.

"Milk?" Jetfire echoed.

"Cookies?" Jetstorm inquired.

"For Santa Claus! We're supposed to put milk and cookies out for him, it's tradition! But we don't have any, cause of the weather and Sari not being here!" He suddenly sat straighter in panic. "Do you think he'll not leave the presents because we didn't give them to him?!" he yelped. The twins looked at each other, now looking worried.

Optimus chuckled. "He doesn't do it in exchange for the cookies. He does it out of kindness. The cookies are just supposed to be a thank you."

"Maybe you can leave him a note, explain why you couldn't?" Jazz suggested.

"Honestly, he could probably look around and see why," Prowl smirked.

"I guess…" Bumblebee still sounded worried.

"It'll be fine, I promise," Optimus assured him.

"But now I don't much feel like singing…" the younger mech muttered. "How can I be cheery when I might have ruined Christmas cause of a little weather?"

"I know, why don't you guys watch a holovid on Teletran-1?" Jazz offered. "It should still work as long as you're not trying to contact outside. It operates on a separate power source, right?"

"He's right, it will get your mind off of this little set-back," Prowl agreed.

"K…" Bumblebee pushed himself off of the sofa and the three of them made their way back to the command center, where the holovids were.

When they were over there, the three older mech sighed. "Can nothing else go wrong this Christmas?" Prowl asked absently.

"Don't say that," Jazz nudged him. "You'll jinx it."

()()()()()

The rest of the day passed without much excitement past the three youngest mechs giving them all spark attacks when they started screaming. They had apparently found Cold Steel in their collection and forgot their worries in the jump-scares, huddling together as darkness crept into the powerless warehouse early, the Cracked-Helm Femme stalking each of her victims with a "**clang**-_screeee_… **clang**_**-**__screeee_…".

"_Kickback, I don't like this… we should go back…"_

"_Come on, we can't just leave the others…"_

"Aaaa-aaaaah!!" the three young mechs screeched along with the femme on the screen and the mech on it's heelstruts were roughly grabbed by two gangly, stripped metal hands and he was dragged off into the darkness as she watched helplessly. Bumblebee buried his faceplate in his hands and peeked between his servos. Jetfire and Jetstorm grabbed each other and held on as if the Cracked-Helm Femme was waiting to drag one of them off at any moment.

"_Oh, Primus! Kickback, no!! …no… no… stay back! No! Nooooo!!"_

Three pairs of optics widened in a don't-want-to-watch-but-can't-look-away way as hydraulic-freezing mutilation occurred. "Oh, slag! Oh, oh slag!" Bumblebee cringed, grabbing onto Jetstorm from the other side of him and deciding to hang on as well.

"That is not right! That is being very not right!" Jetstorm yelped.

()()()()()()

Sentinel cringed at the sound of another screech. It penetrated even the walls of his makeshift office. "Go watch a holovid…" he muttered bitterly. "_That_ was a good choice of words… I think I preferred the singing."

Optimus, sitting across from him at the desk, chuckled. "At least they're having fun again. If very _loud_ fun. Besides, I seem to recall you screaming just as loud when we watched that vid in the academy."

"Remind me why I did that?"

"Screamed?"

"_No._ Watched Cold Steel."

"Because it was Rodimus's favorite," the red and blue prime reminded him with a grin. "I watched it with him so many times I could recite it backwards."

"No accounting for taste, I suppose," Sentinel rolled his optics.

"That reminds me. I was thinking about him the other night," Optimus recalled. "I'm thinking of calling him when this storm passes. You know, just to say hi."

"Wouldn't do you much good right now," Sentinel muttered, looking over some datapads.

Optimus frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Didn't I tell you?" the temporary Magnus glanced up. "He's in the repair bay. Got Cosmic Rust."

"What?!" Optimus sat up straighter. "When?!"

"During a fight with some 'Cons. He's recovering, but won't be released anytime soon." Sentinel went back to the report without a second thought.

"When were you planning on telling me?!"

"To what end? You won't leave this slag-pit planet to see him. The Cons who rusted him are somewhere light-years from here. There's nothing you could do about it."

Optimus deflated, sinking back into his seat. He hated to admit it, but Sentinel was right. What was that Earth saying about a stopped clock? At any rate, he still felt frustrated. "That doesn't mean you should keep it from me. I mean… he's my best friend, you know that." It was true. Optimus knew Rodimus since before he _was_ Rodimus. Back then he was called Hot Rod. Truth be told, the new designation didn't change him much. Besides being a bit more mature, he was still the same cocky, teasing perfectionist.

"Yeah, I noticed during academy. You know, the fact that he hung onto you like an oil leech kind of gave it away," Sentinel replied, glancing up again. "You two should have just bonded and got it over with."

"I told you, it's not like that!" the Earth leader insisted, rolling his optics.

"Wouldn't have guessed it from the-" Sentinel was cut off by another piercing set of vocals, this time followed by laughter. "I swear I'm going to go in there and mute the lot of them…" he growled.

"Fine, I'll go talk to them," Optimus offered, standing up.

()()()()()()

Ratchet long since turned his audio receptors down to tune out the excitement. He'd honestly had _enough_ excitement already for one Christmas Eve. And now he had two little problems. Both sat in their Plexiglas cages, unmoving and innocent looking. Not fooling anybot, especially not an experienced old mech like Ratchet.

He wasn't quite sure what to do with them, though. If he wanted to find anything out he'd have to take them out. And it would take Firewalls rivaling the Head of Science's to block out their control if Jazz was correct. They couldn't just keep them locked up forever, either.

Ratchet sighed, rubbing his optics tiredly. Christmas was getting complicated. He didn't understand most of the human holiday in the first place, figuring his processor too pre-programmed to take in the intricate details of other cultures. Still, he couldn't fully complain. It made the younger mechs happy, even Prowl. And watching Sari light up was a joy all in itself. He looked at the hologram on his desk. Arcee stood, smiling at him. It broke his spark to think about, but she would love this planet, and Sari. And… Christmas. She would especially love Christmas. This would be something fun and exciting to tell the Sparklings she taught.

He checked his internal clock. 8:00 PM. Four hours until Christmas. He shook his head, servos grazing the incorporeal image. "Merry Christmas, Arcee."

()()()()()()

"Hey, Prowl."

"Hmm?"

"Listen… You hear that?"

"… I hear nothing."

"_Exactly_. The scream fest is over."

"Finally…"

Jazz and Prowl relaxed, leaning against each other. They sat illuminated by the dome of ice in the black and gold mech's room, under the decorated tree. Jazz had found all of the bells in the tree and lined them up on a branch just above their heads by pitch. Prowl would hum or sing Christmas carols and Jazz could ring out the tune with him. They found their tastes in holiday music differed greatly. Jazz loved the upbeat songs like "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and "All I want For Christmas is You". Prowl more enjoyed the softer, more traditional carols such as "The Holly and the Ivy" and "Away in a Manger". He was the only of the mechs in the warehouse that seemed to know the more religious songs.

They were all sung out, though, and instead sat silently under the tree, optics offline. "Why didn't you tell me before you could sing?" Jazz asked.

"I told you before, I didn't want to make a big deal of it. I learned to sing here on Earth, but it isn't my favorite way they make music."

"What is?"

Prowl hesitated. "You would not know of it. It's an Earth instrument called a violin. It makes the most beautiful sounds I have ever heard. Each note is like an individual expression. If you shutter your optics and simply listen, it can tell you an entire story without one word. I have heard the wind through the grass and water through a stream flow from that simple instrument."

"Wow…" Jazz smiled. "Sounds like an incredible piece of equipment."

"Mm-hmm…" Prowl hummed his confirmation. "All of this from an instrument half the size of a human arm…"

"Really? That small?"

"Mm-hmm…" Prowl sounded halfway to recharge. It was simply so… comfortable. Leaning against Jazz, cast in the ethereal light, listening to the snow flurry, having had little sleep the night before…

Jazz tightened the hold on Prowl's waist, adjusting him to be comfortable. "Night, Prowl."

"… 'Night…" was the murmured reply. Jazz smiled and kissed the side of his helm before joining him in early recharge.

()()()()()()

"It's not fair!"

"Come on, Bumblebee, you're acting like a sparkling," Optimus urged as they walked down the hall.

"I am not!" the yellow bug insisted, stamping a pede. "It's just not fair! When Santa comes he'll be in Prowl's room cause he's got the tree! They'll be able to see him!"

"Prowl and Jazz will be recharging just like everyone else. If the songs are truth, he doesn't come when we're awake. Just like how he didn't appear last year when you and Sari tried to see him. You fell into recharge and when you woke up there were presents."

"Yeah, he's sneaky like that," Bumblebee pouted.

Optimus chuckled. Christmas really did bring out the child in people, or in this case the sparkling in bots. More so for some than others. "Come on, let's got to recharge, too."

"Aww, but it's only, like, 9:30!"

"Yes, but the sooner you recharge, the sooner we'll be opening presents."

The young mech thought about it a moment before giving in. "Fine, but are you sure he'll leave presents without cookies?"

"I told you, he doesn't do it for free cookies. He does it to celebrate. You know, spread good will and all that."

"Goodwill? You mean that place that sells out-of-date models of human stuff?"

"No, no, no," Optimus chuckled, sliding Bumblebee's door to his room open. "Good will is just the want to do good deeds."

"Ooh…" Bumblebee made his way around piles of mess and hopped onto his berth, laying on his front and resting his chin in his folded arms. "So… kind of like what we do?"

"Exactly. Autobots are practically pre-programmed for good will." Optimus leaned against the door frame. He was glad the younger mech made the connection between Autobot and good deeds. "That's why we feel compelled to help this planet."

Bumblebee nodded, thinking. After a moment he asked quietly, "What about Decepticons pretending to be Autobots? Do you think they feel any form of good will?"

The Prime sighed. He should have seen this coming at some point. "Bumblebee, do you want to talk about it?"

There was a moment's hesitation. "There's nothing to talk about. Sorry I asked," Bumblebee huffed, looking away.

"I know it hurt to be betrayed like that. I just want you to know I'm here if you want to talk."

"I said there's nothing to talk about!" the yellow mech insisted. "Just let me recharge!"

Optimus stayed a moment, then turned to go. "Alright, I won't force it. Goodnight, Bumblebee."

"Night."

()()()()()()

"Brother!" Jetfire squirmed under his brother's touches. "Not here! Is not our place!"

Jetstorm pouted but didn't stop. "We have not been playing for three solars! I am wanting to play!"

"But, brother!" the orange and white tin let out a muted laugh behind his servos. "Okay! Okay, we can playing! But only little bit, and we must being quiet."

Jetstorm grinned and gently kissed the wires of his brother's neck, eliciting a gasp. "I can be quiet, the question is being can you?"

It wasn't long before they lay in comfortable bliss, tired from their game. Jetfire literally glowed from the suppression of his powers, figuring their hosts would appreciate them not singing their sofa. Jetstorm held him tight. He had almost _lost_ him the last night. And now that he was safe, the blue and yellow twin felt no compelling reason to let him go.

His brother adjusted and sighed contentedly. He seemed more content to forget what had happened the other night. The toys were in custody and his processor was his own again. If he dwelled on it too much, he found himself becoming depressed anyway. He had almost _hurt_ his beloved brother. Had completely lost control of everything he was. But now everything was okay again. It was almost the fabled human holiday that Bumblebee had hyped them both up to see.

"Brother…?"

Jetstorm onlined an optic, looking down at him. "Hmm?"

"Merry Christmas…"

He smiled. Jetfire was right. It would be alright, there was no reason to worry about it anymore. "Merry Christmas, brother."


	9. Meanwhile

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah… I own nothing… I only write fanfics… blah blah blah…**

**Note:** Two chapters to go! And I only have… 26 days to do them! --pulls hair-- Anyway, short chapter. I just really wanted to do this chapter, didn't realize it would turn out so small. Oh, well.

**CONTEST! **Before anyone complains about my rhyming skills, I'll just ask _you_ guys. Can _you_ think of any words that rhyme with Detroit? My favorite word to rhyme with Detroit will get a special prize!

**Warnings:** OMG! Can it be? An actual… _straight pairing?!_ --screams in horror-- LOL, this chapter contains a teeny bit of Nanosec/Slo-Mo. Cause they're my human OTP.

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Evil E. Evil - **lol, seriously. You are the most impatient person I know. All I can really answer any of your questions with is, "You'll see!"**  
Flamingmarsh** - That goes for you too x3**  
Sweetyamiyugigirl - **I always loved the image of him playing the violin. And him singing… I'm not quite sure where I got that idea, lol. But it's fun to imagine.**  
Jessangel249 - **This early enough? Lol. I love writing for the twins. Since they only appeared a couple of times (and in their premier comic), there's so much fan-interpretation that can be done for them. And their unique way of speaking I am forever in love with. "Okie-for-dokie!"

**Chapter 9****  
Meanwhile**

::The snowy streets of Detroit::

"Thank you for your patronage. Have a bright and sunny afternoon," a robotic hot dog vendor waved off the one customer it had in three days, blissfully oblivious of the falsity of it's own statement.

"Yeah, I got your sunny afternoon right here…" the middle-aged man grumbled, trudging away through at least two and a half feet of snow. Even the snow plows weren't working in this weather. He, honestly, shouldn't have been out himself, but he hadn't realized until the last minute that he never bought his wife a present. It wasn't his fault, really. He'd simply been too busy.

He took a bite of the dog, mustard and relish sticking to his mustache. The impossibly large box of holiday chocolates under his arm threatened to drop, but he held vigilant. After all, he didn't see himself making it back to the chocolate shop.

At least the crime rate was zilch during the storm. No thieves. No freaks. No killer alien robots. Just an empty white city covered in colorful lights and ringing bells.

"Eh, maybe this ain't so bad…" Thick crystal flakes. Glittering sidewalks. The general feeling of joy in the air. The sounds of Christmas carols drifting from houses. And…

The mound of snow that managed to drop off a roof right when he was passing under it and cover him and his half-eaten hot dog.

"_This_ is why I _hate_ the snow…"

::Detroit Metro Clock Tower::

"Man, this sucks!" Nanosec huffed, watching the snow. "I'm freezing my ass off, and we can't even- ow!" He rubbed the back of his head where a gingerbread cookie made contact.

"You thaid a bad word!" Professor Princess huffed. "Thay you're thorry!"

"Verily! To use such language among the presence of maidens! For shame!"

"Shut up, Aaron!"

"Now, see here, heathen!"

"All of you shut your yaps!" Slo-Mo snapped. "It's Christmas Eve, can't you have a little cheer? Joy? Happiness? Something that doesn't involve bickering like infantile juveniles?"

The Angry Archer huffed, crossing his arms. "How can we be-est merry when our plans hath been cast asunder by mere snow?"

"Yeah, we were supposed to pull a huge heist! You know, _steal_ a little Christmas cheer!" Nino agreed. "But this storm put a quick stop on that. Even my speed or the Princess's gadgets can't get through this."

"That doesn't mean we need to be gloomy, guys and gal! It's still almost Christmas! The big X! Time to break out the eggnog and music!"

"Thlowmow'th right! Thanta'th coming! And I've been exthra good thith year! I only punithed thothe who were _exthra_ naughty, and I only helped you with _three_ heitht-th!"

"You _do_ know Santa's not real, right?"

"Nino!" Slo-Mo scolded.

"_What_? He isn't!"

"Thut up! He ith, too!" Penny stomped her foot.

()()()

Slo-Mo stood on the platform in front of the clock overlooking the stormy city. Somehow the obscurity of the snow made the lights of the city look even more beautiful.

"Samantha?" She turned around to find Nanosec looking at her sheepishly.

"What is it, Nino?"

"I… well… um… do you, you know, have the time?" he asked a bit awkwardly.

Slo-Mo gave him a look. "I _always_ have the time." She pulled out her previously time-stopping watch. "It's five past midnight."

"Good, then… well…" he pulled out a velvet jewelry box. "Merry Christmas."

The brunette crook looked surprised. "Oh, Nino, you really didn't have to go through the-"

"Just open it," the speedster requested.

Slo-Mo took the box and removed the ribbon, opening it. She then gasped. "Oh, Nanosec…" she said as she pulled out a crystal. It was identical to the AllSpark fragment that used to power her watch. For once she was completely speechless.

"You like it? I mean, I stole it just for you. And let me tell you, it wasn't easy to find. One that looked just like yours, I mean. I had to look all over-" He was cut off as she pressed her lips against his. He was stunned a moment before wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing back. It looked like there on that platform, snow falling around them, they both got exactly what they wanted for Christmas.

::Sumdac Tower::

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly! Fa-la-lalala-lala-lala!"

Sari sung happily as she hung the last bit of tinsel on the tree. She stepped back, admiring her work. Perfect. "Okay, guys! We are officially ready for Santa Claus! The tree's decorated, there are cookies and milk, the stockings are hung up, and we've sung every Christmas song we know! And it is… past midnight, holy cow!"

"We should get some sleep so the morning will come faster," Isaac suggested. He had finished putting out the previously mentioned milk and cookies and was sitting on the couch, watching his daughter.

"I dunno, it feels kinda weird not being at the warehouse for Christmas," Bulkhead admitted, looking a bit down. He sat on the floor next to the couch.

"Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be fine!" Sari assured him, adjusting her Santa hat. "I showed them how to do Christmas last year, and if anybody can mimic it it'll be Bumblebee! It's, like, his new favorite time of year!"

"There isn't much we can do about it, anyway. After all, we cannot change the weather. But do not worry, according to the reports it should calm down soon," Professor Sumdac added, patting the spacebridge expert's huge, metal leg.

"I know what would make you feel better! How about some 'The Night Before Christmas'?" the red-haired girl offered, pulling the book off the shelf.

"Didn't we hear that last year?" the large green mech asked.

Sari huffed. "Geez, aren't we picky? Fine, then. Hmm… oh, I know! How about a little variation of it?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'll just… spruce it up a bit!" Sari thought for a moment before nodding, deciding on how to tell it. "Twas the night before Christmas and all through Detroit not a robot was stirring, there was nary a noise…"

"I don't think that rhymes."

"Give me some credit, Bulkhead! Not a whole lot of words rhyme with 'Detroit'!" she huffed. "Now can I please tell this story?"

"Sorry."

"Anyway…"

**Twas the night before Christmas and all through Detroit  
Not a robot was stirring, there was nary a noise**

**Bumblebee was nestled all snug on his berth  
Excited for the holiday he'd found here on Earth**

**Optimus settled down in his own berth with care  
Worrying, no surprise, about the cold winter's air**

**In his office, Ratchet recharged in his chair  
Dreaming of a femme he wished could be there**

**Down the hall, Prowl spent his night in his processor's own  
Wishing happy holidays to those he had once known**

**Meanwhile in the tower nestled high above the storm  
Father, daughter, and robot stayed by the fire warm**

**There Bulkhead made sure there was decoration to spare  
While the professor made sure treats would be there**

"Zzzz…."

Sari stopped telling her story, smiling. Professor Sumdac and Bulkhead had both dozed off. So she stood and grabbed a blanket, finishing her story as she snuggled next to her father and closing her eyes.

**And finally Sari rested down with her family and turned out the light  
Wishing a merry Christmas to all… and to all a good night…**


	10. Claus

**Disclaimer: I'm running out of witty and original ways to write these. So I'll settle with, "Don't sue me. I have cookies."**

**Note:** Done with eighteen days to spare until Christmas. Why is that important? Cause that's when the last chapter will be posted. See you all on Christmas morning!

**Note 2: **I realize that I didn't include Ratchet in the conversation taking place in this chapter. There's a very good reason for it, which I can't say without giving away what happens here.

**WARNINGS: A bit of Jazz/Prowl. Barely enough to require this warning, though.**

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Jessangel249 - **As mentioned above, indeed I will! And yes, their manner of speech is indeed adorable (did I say that last chapter? lol).**  
Sweetyamiyugigirl - **Now that someone mentioned the violin playing, I do have to admit it's not completely my doing. While I had the idea before I saw it, the idea came heavily from a picture on DevART by plantman-EXE. Do go and look her up if you love Jazz/Prowl slash of both the TFA and G1 variety!**  
Evil E. Evil**, **flamingmarsh**, **flareflight17**, and **Hiezen Uchiha - **Thank you all for reading and reviewing! And what do I want for Christmas? Lots and lots of reviews! (And fanart wouldn't be objected to, either. If you do decide to fanart any of my fanfics, send me a PM! If you wish to post them on DevART, my penname there is purpletiger!)

**PrancingTiger86 - **Thanks for pointing out my mistake! It's been edited!

**Chapter 10****  
Claus**

The warehouse was completely quiet as the mechs inside recharged. The snow outside slowed to a light sprinkling for the first time in days. In Prowl's room, the two ninjabots still recharged under the bare yet decorated tree, snuggled against each other and content to stay that way until morning. That is, until Jazz's optics onlined with a start.

At first the black and white mech wasn't sure what had awakened him. Everything seemed normal enough. He checked his internal clock. 1:15am, local Earthen time. What could have woken him at such a…?

That train of thought was cut off as something seemed to melt through the ice wall surrounding the tree, seeming to not even disturb a molecule of it. It was an organic, a human, or at least it seemed to be. He was a plump old man, with a white beard and an coat of red velvet with white trim. He wore black boots and gloves. Over his shoulder he carried a large cloth sack. As he stared at the strange organic, there was only one word he could think of. "Crazy…"

The man put a finger to his lips with a, "Shh…" He gestured to Prowl, who still slept. Somehow the new presence hadn't been detected by the usually extremely alert cyber ninja. He then moved over to the tree and waved a hand in the darkness. A few candles seemed to appear from thin air. They lit the room in a mysterious dim glow. "Jazz," he then requested, turning to the mech. "Will you help an old man with his work? I am afraid I am not as young as I used to be. I am not sure if this old back could handle some of your friends'… larger gifts." Jazz wouldn't usually hesitate at helping someone in need, but he looked unsure at the mech still leaning against him. "Do not worry, he will not awaken."

Jazz gently removed Prowl from himself, lowering him to lay on the floor. Sure enough, he oddly didn't so much as twitch. "Crazy…" he repeated. He then moved over to the old man. He was lifting a gift from his bag and setting it beneath the makeshift Christmas tree. "You must be the Claus cat BB has been excited about." A moment after he said it he came to a realization. "Hey, how'd you know my name?"

The red-suited man's dark eyes twinkled. "I am indeed the one they call Santa Claus. You may, call me by my true name, Saint Nicolas. However, Nick will do if you prefer. And as for _your_ name? Well, it is my job to know such things."

Jazz thought about it a moment before smiling. "Point well taken, Nick. What do you need help with?"

"Reach into my sack and pull out the next gift, please."

Jazz reached down and the sack seemed to expand on its own to accommodate for the size difference. The seemingly shallow (at least for the cyber ninja) bag felt much deeper when reached into. His servos found something solid and he pulled it out. It was a rectangular package, wrapped in blue paper with an orange ribbon. It was large, at least by human standards. For a Cybertronian it was barely larger than his hands. On the tag under the ribbon was written, 'To: Jetfire and Jetstorm.' "How'd your bag do that?" he asked. "Personal transwarp?"

Saint Nicolas chuckled. "Something like that."

Jazz thought of asking him further about it, but decided against it. Instead he put the gift with the other. The gift Nicolas had put down first was yellow with a teal ribbon. The tag indicated it as Bumblebee's. The one for the yellow mech was fairly large itself, though it didn't seem that way when Nicolas had put it down. He wondered how the human could carry it. "Well, these three will be glad you came by. Bumblebee especially, he's been absolutely _psyched_ about Christmas."

"Yes, he is a spirited young one, isn't he?" the man called Claus chuckled again. "A bit brash, and more than a little impatient, but he has a good heart. That is, a good spark." He turned to the large gift Jazz had put down. "I must admit to having not the knowledge of you and your comrades that I do of the five who have been here. I can only watch those here on Earth. However, when you are here… well, you know the song, I assume?"

"You see us when we're recharging?"

"And I know when you are awake," he affirmed, nodding. "From what I have seen, though, the two other young ones deserve something special. I understand that they had a rough time before coming here."

"Yeah. Had an accident at an Energon refinery, almost offlined," Jazz answered somberly. "Then they got turned into these… sentient weapons. Never even got asked if it was what they wanted. Believe me, I know a few things about wantin' to choose my own way."

The next gift was blue and yellow, and slightly smaller than the twins'. According to the tag it was for Jazz's superior himself. "Is it true? You know, that you give people who've been bad coal?" Jazz asked curiously, putting it under the tree.

"Indeed. After all, I mustn't condone poor behavior."

"Understandably. But… well… why _coal_?"

"Well, I must give them _something_," Nicolas chuckled. "I actually cannot recall when I started giving coal, but it somehow simply stuck. It's now expected."

The ninjabot grinned. "I don't suppose SP qualifies, huh?"

The saint shook his head. "No, no. He _is_ most certainly…" he paused a moment, searching for the proper word, "… a jerk. However, despite what many believe, being a jerk is not the same as being naughty."

The black and white ninjabot reached in and pulled out a gift the same size as Sentinel's, this time red with blue ribbon. He didn't have to guess too hard at who's it was. "Hope you didn't get Sentinel and Optimus the same present. We'll be havin' a civil war right here in the warehouse if ya did."

"Do not worry, I am not so unwise," Nicolas replied, smiling. "Quite the opposites those two are, I have observed. They could stand to learn a few things from each other. Optimus could learn a bit more confidence from Sentinel. And Sentinel… well, there is more than a few things he could learn from Optimus."

As he placed the gift, Jazz's gaze drifted to the mech he'd fallen for, who still mysteriously slept through their conversations and work. After a moment, he asked, "Hey, is there a chance I could… request a gift?"

"Of course, though I usually take requests _before_ Christmas morning," the man in red replied in good humor.

"It's not for me."

"Oh? Who is it for then?"

"Well…"

()()()

As they finished up, Nicolas finally slung the now empty bag over his should and took a breath. "Thank you for your company, Jazz. And your help."

"No problem, Nick. And thanks for, you know, that special request I asked for. Are you sure it's okay?"

Nicolas smiled reassuringly. "There is always room in my bag for a selfless gift. Now, I must go. I have many other places to visit, then a wife and warm bed waiting to greet me."

"Yeah. Sorry for keepin' you so long."

"Oh, do not worry, it has been really _no_ time at all."

Jazz check his internal clock. "1:15am? But… how?"

"We humans call it… magic. Oh, speaking of." Nicolas clapped his hands twice and the Christmas lights in the room lit up. Power returned to the rest of the warehouse as well with a dull hum. "Now, if you will excuse me, there are a few boxes of coal I must deliver to the Detroit Metro Clocktower."

"Sure. Thanks again. Oh, and merry Christmas, Nick."

"Thank you again as well. Merry Christmas, Jazz." With a twinkle of his eye, the man many knew as Santa Claus put a finger to the side of his nose and melted back through the ice wall.

The moment he disappeared, the ninjabot's internal clock clicked to 1:16am.

"Jazz…?"

He turned around. Prowl sat up, stretching. "What on Earth are you doing up at this hour?" the black and gold mech asked. "Oh, the power's back on…"

Jazz shook his head, rejoining him. "Yeah. But it's not important right now." He spread himself on the ground and pulled a confused Prowl down next to him. "Go back to recharge."

Prowl gave him a questioning look, but didn't push it. He was still too tired. Instead he simply offlined his optics and fell back into recharge.

Jazz sighed in relief. He had no doubt Prowl would have seen the gifts. It was true that he wanted to give him his present right then and there, but it wasn't the time. They'd have to wait until the sun rose for Christmas morning.


	11. Christmas

**Disclaimer: Since this is the last one of this fanfic, I'll just say it. I don't own Transformers or any people, bots, places, or things associated with it. It all belongs to Hasbro and Takara. Please don't sue me.**

**Note: **Holy Primus, I made it! Well, here it is, the final chapter of Snow! Keep an eye out after this for the sequel, _Control_! Merry Christmas!

**WARNINGS: This chapter contains Yule Tide flavored fluff between Jazz and Prowl. You have been warned.**

**READ & REVIEW ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:**

**Jessangel249 - **o-O My goodness, I hope you didn't get in trouble! XD I'm flattered, but please don't get in trouble for me! X3**  
Hiezen Uchiha - **No, no, that made perfect sense! *snickers remembering Prowl's theory of how he was able to be in more place than once* "Ho… ho… ho." Anyone who saw the Christmas episode will get that. xD**  
XStarSaber**, **flamingmarsh**, **TransformersLuver**, **PrancingTiger86**, **Hiding In My Writing**, **Evil E. Evil**, and **tubular_turtle - **Thank you so much for all of your reading and reviewing for this fanfic! Please, everyone, review this chapter if you can, and if you want to continue reading this storyline look out for _Control_, coming soon!

**Chapter 11****  
Christmas**

"Sentinel Prime, sir!"

"Ugh…"

"Pleasing to be waking up!"

"…go away…"

"Very well, sir. But can we be having your present, then?"

"Snrkt… wha-?" Sentinel Prime's processor forced itself back online. "Present…?"

"Yessir!" the twins were smiling at the other side of the desk he'd fallen asleep at. "Merry Christmas, sir!" The power was restored and lighting the room. "Bumblebee is wanting to be opening presents! We have been waiting for you!"

Sentinel grumbled and stood, stretching his joints. Internal clock indicated 6 in the morning, Earthen EST. "Alright, I'm coming… but this better be good or it's scrap duty for both of you."

The two Junior Officers glided down the hall to Prowl's room. Sentinel followed begrudgingly, not really wanting to be up. The others had already gathered, a stack of gifts waiting for them under the colorfully lit tree.

"There they are!" Bumblebee jumped to his pedes as they entered. "I thought we'd have to open them without you guys!"

"I don't think so," Ratchet grumbled. "If I gotta be online at this Primus-forsaken hour, then so do they…" He clutched a barrel of oil, sitting on the floor, looking about as grumpy as the blue and grey prime felt.

"So why couldn't this wait a couple of megacycles?" Sentinel asked bitterly.

Prowl scoffed. "Do you honestly think these three would have allowed it?"

"Guys! You're doing this on purpose!" the yellow bug complained. "Stop delaying! It's time to open some presents!"

"No bot's stopping you. Just open one already if it's so exciting!" Sentinel huffed. He took a seat between Jazz and Optimus.

"Yeah, go ahead," the latter smiled. "We're all here. Why don't you do the honors and pass them out?"

"Sure!" Bumblebee grinned. "Oh, first!" He swiped a bot-sized Santa hat from seemingly nowhere and pulled it on. "Just call me Santa Bee!"

"Alright, alright!" Jazz laughed. "You've gotten us all ready and excited, don't leave us hangin'! Let's get this present gig started!"

"Right, right!" Bumblebee nodded. "Let's see… the first one's for… Ratchet!" He picked up a gift and ran over to him. It was fairly large and red and white striped like a candy cane.

"Great. Let's see the damage…" the medibot grumbled. He tore open the paper and opened the box inside. He then raised an optic ridge. "Well, this is new," he muttered, pulling out a note.

"What is it?" Optimus asked.

"I think it's a letter from Claus. Says, 'Sometimes even old bots need new tools. Or rather, new tools require experienced bots'." He looked in the box and grinned. "New tools for old bots indeed." He pulled out a laser scalpel. It was shiny and new.

"Nice," Jazz grinned.

"Wait, if he's a human, where'd he get Cybertronian technology?" Sentinel asked skeptically.

"Don't ruin the fun!" Bumblebee stuck his glossa out at the temporary Magnus. "He's Santa! He can do that!"

"And I ain't complainin'," Ratchet added. "He got me the whole deal. Scalpel, cables, everythin'. I gotta admit, he's good."

"Okay, okay! Just get the next present already!" Sentinel huffed. "I wanna be out of this room before tomorrow!"

"You're such a Scrooge!" the yellow mech complained.

"A what?!" Sentinel barked, not sure exactly how offended he should be.

"It's a character from a story called _A Christmas Carol_ who hated Christmas and seemed to enjoy ruining it for everyone," Prowl explained. "Humans use the name to describe others who behave the same way."

"He was most memorable for his line, 'Bah, humbug', which people use to express a lack of Christmas spirit," Optimus added.

Sentinel looked at them both like they had grown extra heads. "That cinches it. You're all obsessed with organics! As soon as I can get the ship running, I'm parking it _far_ away from you!"

"SP, chill. Seriously, man," Jazz mediated. "This is important to them, can we at least let them enjoy it?"

"Sure, whatever," Sentinel muttered, leaning back and shutting his mouth again.

"_Thank _you, Jazz," Bumblebee huffed. "Now. The next one is for… Optimus!" He brought the gift to his leader and stepped back. Jazz was right, this was important to _all_ of them. So he resolved to try and be as patient and selfless as possible. And it was _killing_ him.

Optimus opened the colorful blue and red paper and discovered his had a note as well. "Sometimes," he read aloud, "the best thing you can do is keep the promises you already made."

"What is that meaning?" Jetstorm asked. His twin shrugged.

"Well, what's in it?" Bumblebee urged.

Optimus pulled out a datapad and booted it up. After a moment he smiled nostalgically. "It's _Once Upon a Hill of Scrap_. It's Rodimus's favorite story. I promised I'd read it centuries ago, but… I just never got around to it."

"Hey, I read that back in the day," Jazz said. "It's really good. Like a classic. I think you'll like it."

"Why don't you open yours next, Bumblebee?" Prowl suggested.

Those were the best words Bumblebee heard all Christmas. He practically pounced on his gift, tearing through it like a beast. He was so eager, he almost ripped the note inside in half. He stopped at the last second, though, reading it aloud. "'Sometimes it's easy to forget to have fun. Be their reminder.' Oooh, awesome!" He dropped the note and pulled out a human-sized microphone, two Cybertronian sized ones, and a game disk. "It's Karaoke Plus! He even managed to get big enough microphones for us!"

"Car-eye-" Jetfire started.

"Oh-key?" Jetstorm finished.

"It's a human activity. They choose a song and it plays without lyrics so they can sing it instead," Prowl once again explained.

"Great, more singing…" Sentinel grumbled.

"I think it sounds like a blast!" Jazz grinned. "I say we try it later tonight!"

"Seconded!" Bumblebee agreed enthusiastically, raising his servos high.

"Then it's settled," Optimus chuckled. "Tonight we'll close off Christmas with a sing-off."

"Yes!" the yellow bug cheered. He then remembered what they were doing. "Oh, right! For the awesome suggestion, Jazz gets to go next!" Bumblebee picked up a black and white wrapped gift.

"Crazy. I admit, I've been _dyin'_ to know what's in this," the ninjabot admitted. He removed the wrapping and pulled out his note. "Everyone needs a little music, whether they know it or not. Consider it a gift that you are aware."

"These notes sound like the cryptic ninja-speak Prowl spouts," Bumblebee said.

"Nothin' wrong with that," Jazz replied.

"Good answer," Prowl chuckled, nudging his companion with his shoulder-plate.

"What are you getting?" the twins chorused.

"Just what I always wanted and needed," Jazz grinned. "A brand new pair of speakers, with plenty of sound." He tilted the box for them to see. "Perfectly compatible with my sound system."

"I'll install it for you. Break in a few of my new tools," Ratchet offered.

"_After_ karaoke! I don't want his new speakers blowing out the ones on the TV if you do it wrong," Bumblebee insisted.

"Alright now, let's not start arguing here," Optimus requested, holding up his servos for peace as he tried to keep war from breaking out in Prowl's room. "Let's just keep going and sort all of that out later."

"Right!" Bumblebee nodded. He headed back to the pile. Only three presents remained. "This one's for the twins." He handed it over.

The two mechs tore through the paper with nearly the same vigor as Bumblebee had. "Family comes in many forms," they read their note in unison, "and you can sometimes find it in surprising places. Always remember that you're rarely as alone as you feel."

"Wow, that was… deep," Jazz commented.

The twins reached into the package and pulled out a holo-projector. It was bigger than Ratchet's of Arcee. Jetfire clicked it on and immediately a hologram flickered above it. It was of not just Jetfire and Jetstorm, but Sentinel and Jazz, and Wheeljack, Perceptor, and Red Alert, and even Ultra Magnus. The Autobot Elite Guard sigil stood emblazoned behind them all. Jetfire and Jetstorm stared at it wordlessly. Even over their bond they found themselves speechless. They always felt like they were alone, just as they had been in the refinery. But… they somehow had simply forgotten that there were so many bots that cared about them now. Red Alert, who was maternal and kind to them. Ever patient Perceptor and cheerful Wheeljack, who rebuilt and gave them new purpose. Jazz, who understood them better than any other bot. And yes, even Sentinel cared for the, even if he hated to admit it.

Jetfire spoke first. "Wow. You are not exactly being the photogenic, brother. Your face is looking like it lost to cyberhounds."

"Yours still does," his brother retorted.

"Not the time or place for a wrestlin' match, cats," Jazz warned with good humor.

"Wait, where-?" Sentinel began.

"He's _Santa Claus_!" Bumblebee cut him off. "He can _do_ that! Will you stop questioning him if I give you _your_ present next?"

"Fine." Sentinel took the gift and started opening it.

'_Odd,'_ Jazz thought. _'I was sure it was smaller than that last night…'_

As soon as the box was cracked open, something small and black dropped to the floor, rolling to a stop at Prowl's pedes. He picked it up. "Coal…?"

Sentinel tipped the box. Coal spilled across the floor. A note followed it. No one seemed to know how to react, least of all the receiver.

Well, almost no one. Within seconds Bumblebee was snickering. He finally let out a guffaw and began laughing loudly, doubled over in mirth. After a moment Optimus joined in. Prowl chuckled, and even Jazz couldn't hold back a laugh. The twins tried to hide their snickering. "It's not that funny!" Sentinel snapped at them.

Bumblebee picked up a note and held it up. "Maybe not, but this is!"

In big letters across the paper was written, "JUST KIDDING."

Sentinel looked back in the box. Wrapped to protect it from the coal was what looked like another datapad. It was slightly bigger than one, though, and was covered in buttons. It even had a personalized stylus. "A data organizer. Top of the line," Sentinel whistled. "Alright, he's got taste, I'll give him that. Could do without his sense of humor, though."

The room calmed and Bumblebee took a deep breath, turning back to the tree. "Okay, okay. There's one last… hey, where'd it go?" The last gift, the black and gold wrapped one marked for the ninjabot of the same colors, had vanished.

"Sorry, Bee," Jazz said, holding up the gift. "Didn't mean to pull yer job out from under ya, but… I wanna give this one. It's kinda… no. It's _very_ important to me."

"Fine," Bumblebee huffed, sitting between the Jetstorm and Optimus. "Bondmates…" He rolled his optics.

Jazz turned to Prowl and looked a bit unsure of what to say at first. The black and gold ninjabot simply waited patiently. "There's probably not a note in here, cause it's not from St. Nick. I mean, it is, he did bring it here, but… it was my request."

Bumblebee shot to attention. "What?! You met -- MMPH!?"

The twins covered his mouth, silencing him. "Shh!"

Jazz ignored him. "I guess if I had to put a note in here… nah, I wouldn't. I mean, everything I wanna say is best said to you like… well… like this." He took a deep breath. "I've never met a bot like you. We're, like… in perfect sync. You're the harmony to my rhythm. I know it's weird for me to feel like this when we've only known each other for so little time, but… I feel like it was fate or something that brought us together like this. It sounds totally corny, but…"

"Just give him the present already!" Sentinel finally cut in. Optimus elbowed him.

"Right, here…" Jazz sheepishly passed the gift over.

Prowl opened it carefully. He didn't want to rush the surprise and ruin the mood. When he removed the paper and took the top off of the box, his visor widened. "Jazz…" he breathed out. Air caught in his vents. Inside the box was a beautifully crafted violin, one that was large enough for him. "It's… I don't know what to say…"

"Then… don't," Jazz smiled. "Play it."

Prowl took the violin out, testing it with the bow. The sound was clear and already tuned. He knew how to play the way all Cybertronians learned such new skills. He watched many humans, analyzed the technique. But he knew that wasn't all there was to the beautiful stringed instrument in his servos. The music had to come from the soul, the heart, or in his case the spark. So he shuttered his optics and allowed his spark to guide the bow across the strings and servos along the neck. The others listened to the melody it made.

Bumblebee heard joy. _'Longarm may have been a lying piece of scrap, but I have real friends now.'_

Optimus heard peace. _'Someday Cybertron will by free from war. Then we won't have to worry about losing our friends anymore.'_

Jetstorm and Jetfire heard a bond. _'It's not just anymore, is it brother?' 'I am thinking it has not been for a long time…'_

Sentinel heard home. _'Cybertron needs me now. As soon as I'm done with this blasted mission I can leave this filthy planet behind forever. Good riddance.'_

Ratchet heard memories. _'I promise, Arcee, I'm gonna fight for yer processor. It's not fair what happened to you, but I'm not gonna run from it anymore. I'm gonna make it __right__.'_

And Jazz? Jazz heard love. _'Now that I've got you, ninjabot, I'm not lettin' you go. I fought this hard to get you. I'll fight to keep you if I hafta.'_

()()()

"Whew!" Sari shook the snow off herself as Bulkhead transformed into robot mode in the main room of the warehouse. "At least it's a light sprinkle now. I think I need some chapstick, though." She retracted the wings of her new jetpack her father made for her for Christmas. "Flying through cold wind is _not_ good for the lips."

"Hey, I wonder where the guys are," Bulkhead said, scratching his helm and looking around the room. "I figured they'd be in here." The room was colorful and decorated, but empty of any bots.

"Weird. Maybe…"

"Wait a sec! Listen…"

Sari concentrated on listening like he said. She heard music drifting from the rooms. No, not music. She heard family. _'I always thought I just had a dad. Turned out, I have a lot more than that. I have brothers. Giant fighting alien robot brothers. Best. Family. EVER.'_

Bulkhead heard art. _'Just because I'm good at destroying stuff doesn't mean it's all I like. I like __makin__' stuff, too. There's nothin' wrong with that.'_

()()()

Prowl finished, lowering the bow and onlining his optics. The others were staring at him. "What?" he asked, shifting uncomfortably. He forced his faceplate to stay the same color.

"Prowl, that was awesome!" Bumblebee enthused. "I mean, I usually think stuff like that is kinda lame, but the way you play is totally, you know, not!"

"Eh, it was okay…" Sentinel muttered. He was adamant in his determination to not let anything Christmas or musical move him. It was a losing battle, but he wouldn't admit it.

From the door there was a clapping sound. Sari stood there, applauding enthusiastically. "A giant violin? Awesome! Almost beats my gifts! …okay, it totally doesn't, but it's still pretty cool!"

"Sari! Bulkhead!" Optimus stood up. He was going to greet them, but Bumblebee (as usual) beat him to it.

"You made it! Awesome!" Bumblebee scooped the human girl up into his servos enthusiastically. "What'd you get? Guess what I got! Come on! Okay, I'll tell you, I got Karaoke Plus! With mech-sized microphones! It comes with all the songs and unlockable ones and…"

"Okay, okay!" Sari laughed. "Slow down!"

"Nice to see you guys make it," Optimus grinned, clapping Bulkhead on the shoulder plate.

"We're lucky to have," the large green mech replied. "The snow's calmed down, but it's taking a while for the plow-bots to clear the streets."

"Not that anyone's really going out too much today, since it's Christmas and everything," Sari put in.

"Yeah, so we had to get here through the snow and stuff. Luckily, a little snow won't stop me now that I can see out there," Bulkhead pounded his chestplate.

"Yeah, and I flew here!" Sari grinned.

"Flew? What do you mean flew?" Ratchet asked.

"Like this!" Sari pushed a button and the wings of her jetpack sprang out. She jumped out of Bumblebee's servos and flew circles around him.

"Whoa!" the yellow bug laughed. "Awesome!"

"I know, right?" the techno-organic teenager winked.

"I was not knowing humans could flying," Jetfire commented.

"They can't. It's likely an invention of her father's," Prowl pointed out. "Jetfire and Jetstorm, this is Sari Sumdac. And technically, she's not human. Not fully, anyway."

"Hiya!" Sari zipped over to them, holding out a hand. The twins looked unsure, having never actually met an organic before. The last time they had been on Earth they'd only been for a short period of time. And Sentinel had told them a lot of not-so-good things about the organics, especially humans. She noticed their look and rolled her eyes. "Look, obviously you came here with the big-mouth over there, so I'm just assuming what you know you've heard from him. Trust me, whatever he told you, it's not true. Humans can't spit acid, or breathe fire, or whatever."

The twins looked at each other, then at Jazz. "It's true. Humans are pretty much harmless. And Sari's a nice kid, you'll like her," he assured them.

Jetstorm was the first to brave contact. He reached a single digit out and touched Sari's hand. She smiled and closed her fingers around it, shaking it. Jetstorm grinned at his brother and nodded in reassurance. Jetfire reached out as well and mimicked his brother. "Is being very nice to meet you, Sari Sumdac."

"Great. Freezing weather, strange alien holidays, strange man in the warehouse, now the tiny organic is here. This is the _worst_ mission ever," Sentinel groaned.

"Hey, if you don't want your data-organizer, I could always use-" Optimus started.

"No! No, that's okay, I need it."

"Thought so. So stop whining."

"I don't whine!"

"You just were!"

"Was not!"

"No arguing!" Ratchet snapped.

"He started it!" they yelled in unison.

"Shut it, both of you!"

"Ugh, déjà vu…" Prowl groaned, slapping his faceplate.

"Wha…?" Sari and Bulkhead started.

"Long story!" the others chorused.

()()()()()

"Jingle bell, jingle bell

Jingle bell rock…!"

Sari and Bumblebee doubled in Karaoke Plus, delighted to find that it came with a Christmas themed play list. Jazz and the twins gathered around, dancing and singing along. Sentinel and Optimus sat at the table on the other side of the main room, Optimus reading his story-pad and the temporary Magnus fiddling with his organizer. Ratchet used the new tool set to see if he could fix the generator, even though the power had been restored the previous night. Bulkhead set up the art set he'd gotten as a gift and painted his interpretation of the scene.

Prowl smiled as he watched the scene. What he'd give to have a holovid of this moment. Everyone playing and having fun and for a moment all getting along. The unity and (relative) peace calmed his agitated circuits. His breakdown from before was all but forgotten. He shook his head, though, remembering it, and walked down the hall. This seemed to be how it had all started. The others having fun while he enjoyed the solitude, reflecting on his own spark. It was Christmas and everyone got what they wanted. He opened the door to his room and chuckled at the paper-strewn mess. He strode over to the violin on the shelf next to his modes, running his servos along the strings. He hadn't just gotten what he wanted, but so much more than he'd hoped for.

Prowl's head snapped up. What was that? He suddenly had the feeling… something was coming. Why, on this day of joy, was he suddenly feeling dread? Anxiousness? He stared at the samurai mods. After another twinge he made his decision. He removed the reindeer antlers from the helmet and began equipping the mods.

"Prowl?"

He didn't even pause. "Something is happening, Jazz. Can you feel it?"

Jazz gave the gold and black mech a puzzled look. He didn't sense anything wrong. And why should he on such a fun and fantastic holiday? "You're sure? You don't just feel, I dunno, oil build-up?" Prowl gave him a look over his shoulder. "Hey, it's happened."

"Something is coming. I don't know what, but-"

CLINK CLINK CLINK

Prowl and Jazz looked at each other, then dashed to the door. The sound of something tiny and metal had come from the hall. But now that they looked, there was nothing there.

"It was nothin', I'm sure," Jazz said, though he sounded more like he was trying to reassure himself. "Come on back to the party. The twins are gonna try singin'. It'll be fun."

Prowl hesitated a moment, then looked back at Jazz. Looking at him, he wanted to believe it. Finally, he gave in. "Alright. Back to the party."

The two cyberninjas returned to the main room to find the TV had been turned off of the game and now showed the Society of Ultimate Villainy making their way in their own unique fashions through or over the deep snow on the ground, bags of loot over their shoulders. Flying police drones were on their tail but not having much luck, with the actual police muddled down by the still heavily unplowed roads.

"What's goin' down?" Jazz asked, leaning in next to the twins.

"We don't know," Bumblebee huffed. "One minute we're singing to our sparks' content, and the next the channel changes without warning! Someone musta stepped on the remote or something."

"I think he meant with SUV," Prowl pointed out.

"Oh."

"Looks like they just robbed a few stores and are using the snow for their escape," Bulkhead answered. "It's working really well for them, since the police can't get through it."

"Well, then we're going to have to show them that snow doesn't stop the Autobots," Optimus replied "The Christmas festivities will have to be put on hold."

"A little Yule-Tide butt whooping?" Sari grinned excitedly. "What better way to spend Christmas?"

"Let's show them that no one messes with our favorite holiday!" Bumblebee agreed.

"Want us to be coming along?" Jetfire asked.

"Nah, let us handle it," Ratchet grunted, walking over. "You've never dealt with humans before, they have to be handled with a certain amount of finesse."

Sentinel snorted. "You guys? Finesse? This I gotta see."

"Then keep watchin' the screen, junior!" Ratchet snapped. "We'll show you a few things about 'finesse'!"

"You were right. Something did happen," Jazz said lightly to the other ninjabot. The latter looked thoughtful, though. "What is it?"

"Nothing, it's just that this… nevermind, it's nothing. Stay here with those three, we'll be right back."

"A'ight, but be careful."

"Well, looks like we'll be getting a fight for Christmas," Optimus commented.

"Just what I always wanted," Sari quipped.

"Then let's transform and roll out!"

(((())))

**End Notes: **Alright everyone, that was the end of _Snow_! Once again, keep an eye out for the fanfic this was all building up to, _Control_! And of course, Merry Christmas!


End file.
